Until I Remember
by SoundGeare
Summary: Link loses certain memories during those years in the temple of time. Certain memories that were able to protect him from his own conscience. Now he is lost, seven long years lie between him and anybody who knows or cares about him. Or so he thinks. Is a long forgotten friendship enough to protect Link from himself? Part one of the Memorial Trilogy
1. At a Loss

The genie was out of the bottle…

Could it ever go back?

If something happens, and you ignore it, does that mean that it didn't happen?

Link stepped onto the bridge, leaving behind the place where he had always lived.

No, as much as it had seemed otherwise, the forest was his home. It was, and always would be his home, if only for two things. The Deku tree, and Saria's friendship. Both were dead now. At least, they seemed to be. The Deku tree was dead, and it was his fault. No matter what the Deku tree said, Link knew deep inside that it was because of him. A death he could have prevented. If Link had just been faster, somehow killed that spider monster quicker, maybe the Deku tree would have lived. Maybe it wouldn't have, but it was Link's fault that there was no chance to know.

Even though the Deku tree had tried to comfort him, using his last breaths to tell Link how to make it right. How to make up for what he had done, or more, what he hadn't done. When he had left the presence of the dead tree, the dead protector, the other Kokiri seemed to know something was wrong. Before he had even left the forest, they had decided that Link himself had murdered the Deku tree. Even as he stepped out of the woods, Link felt that deep inside, that he believed it himself.

As he walked across the bridge, accompanied only by a pulsating white fairy that he had met earlier that day, Link heard a voice call him from behind. He turned, and there she was. Saria was standing across from him, a sad look in her eyes. She began to speak. Her voice was soft, yet it somehow managed to not only reach Link's ears, but his heart as well. Across from him stood his only friend, probably the only person in the world who cared about him, definitely the only person here.

"Oh, you're leaving…" It was a question, but she said it as a fact. She knew that he was leaving, and to some extent, she knew why. Link walked over to her, he had always felt safe when he was near her. She had always been a source of vibrant cheer and company to a lonely forest boy. Now she seemed to be the lonely one. As much as she was Link's only friend, Link was one of her closest friends.

"I knew…" She began, trying to find the words, "That you would leave the forest someday, Link…" Yes, Link didn't belong here, even though Saria could find a way past that fact and accept him, she couldn't fully ignore it. Link didn't belong here. "Because you are different from me and my friends…" Her words stung Link. Here was the person who had always accepted him, always been there for him. But now she was voicing the fact that they had both always known, accepting him as an outsider.

Link couldn't bear to listen any longer. He was doing all he could to hold back the tears that were sure to come. Two things existed for him in the forest. Two things that had made the forest a home to him. One was the Deku tree, who had always accepted him just as he accepted the other children. And Saria, his only true friend. Now the Deku tree was dead, and Saria blamed him just like the rest of them. Link had never felt more alone.

Suddenly Saria reached into her pocket and pulled something out. It was her ocarina. She used to play it in the woods. Link could remember listening to her play it, the shrill notes echoing through the labyrinthine passages of the lost woods. Link had always been able to find his way through the woods by following the sound of Saria's ocarina. Now she seemed to be handing him the instrument. Link took the ocarina from her hand and looked at it, feeling confused. Why was she handing him her ocarina, was she giving it to him?

Link tried to listen to her now. Tried to pull himself out of his thoughts long enough to understand what was going on. She had just said something. Now she was looking at him. She seemed to be expecting something. Maybe she had asked him a question?

Link was silent. There was nothing he could do. The sadness in Saria's eye seemed to grow the longer Link hesitated. Everything that had happened in the past day was falling apart. Link could feel the pressure, it was pushing him to leave, but he wanted to say something, anything that would answer Saria's question.

Link panicked. He backed up a step, and then another. Suddenly he turned and ran out of the woods. Leaving behind everything that he had ever known. Maybe it would be okay. He had let down the let down the Deku tree, who had been like a father to him. He had let down Saria, his only friend. He had even let down the Kokiri, the ones who had dealt with him for all those years. His weakness had taken away their protector.

Maybe Link would be able to start again outside of the forest. Nobody would know him, maybe nobody would know about the Deku tree. Maybe Link would find another friend. But first there was something that he needed to do. In his dying words, the Deku tree had urged Link to take the bright green stone of the Kokiri and to meet with a princess. Before he did anything else, Link needed to make up for what he had done.

Link walked into the expansive field, feeling a purpose. This was something new, but it felt good. For once, Link knew what he was going to do. He was going to put one foot in front of the other until he had made up for what he had done. He was going to fix things.


	2. For These Sins

Before I get this second chapter started, I just want to thank you guys that are leaving reviews. When it comes to motivation, I probably wouldn't have finished this chapter for at least another day or two if it wasn't for you. Just keep it up and I'll keep churning out chapters for you.

* * *

Are dreams real?

If something is real inside your mind, is it real?

If you want something to be real, more than anything else in the world.

Can it be?

Link wanted to be at home. He wanted to be lying in his bed, in his tree house. He wanted to be comfortable. He wanted to have a friend. He wanted Saria to be his friend again.

As he walked away from the forest, Link couldn't stop thinking about the ocarina that was now carefully stowed in his backpack. What was Saria's purpose in giving it to him? Link knew that she blamed him for the death of the Deku tree, just as the other Kokiri children did. It couldn't be a present. You gave a present to a friend, and surely Link was no longer counted among Saria's friends.

He had killed the Deku tree.

Link riddled his brain for answers as he walked across the through the field. A light breeze flowed across the grass, causing a rippling effect. The air tugged at his hat, threatening to carry it away from him. The air also dried the tears on his cheeks.

In the distance, Link could something. He wasn't sure what it was, but from the Deku tree's last words, it was probably the Castle Town. That thought began the spiral anew. The Deku tree was dead. Link had been alienated from everything he had ever known.

The breeze made his fresh tears feel icy.

* * *

Link was running now.

About an hour ago, he had passed a man heading away from Castle Town. From a distance, the man had seemed ordinary, a normal smudge on the horizon.

As he neared, Link began to see that this man seemed different. Much different from anybody he had ever laid eyes on. He wore a singlet that was pure white except for a tan stripe across the chest. Dirty auburn hair streamed down either side of his face. The man was walking abnormally slow, or so it seemed to Link. The man was staring toward his feet, watching as each one descended to the floor below. He seemed so focused on the toes poking out of his leather sandals, that he nearly walked straight into Link.

In afterthought, Link probably could have stepped out of the way and avoided the whole thing. But just as the walking man was focused on his toes, Link was fixated on this strange man. Or maybe, this was normal. Maybe everybody outside of the forest dressed this way, walked this way.

As the man began to near, Link began to slow down, until his speed matched that of the walking man. Suddenly the man snapped out of his trance and sidestepped around Link. It seemed for a moment that the man would simply continue on his way, but then he turned and asked.

"Hey kid, what are you doing out in the middle of nowhere? Don't you know it can be dangerous to wander out in the field alone?"

Link hadn't expected to be questioned, and therefore he was unprepared to answer the man.

"Uh, I'm on my way to Castle Town right now. But, um, if it's so dangerous, why are you doing it?"

The man seemed taken aback when Link redirected the question. He spoke quickly, seeming almost as flustered as Link. This confused Link, how could the man be as flustered, Link had been torn away from everything he had ever known earlier that day. What right did this man have to feel even half as flustered as Link did?

"Um, it's because, well.." The man trailed off, unaware of Link's inner turmoil. "Wait, do your parents know you're out here?" Suddenly the man glanced toward the sky and seemed worried.

"Hey, kid, you'd better hurry. If you don't get to Castle Town quick, you're not gunna be able to get in."

The man's sudden change of attitude worried Link. "Well, if I can't get in tonight, then I could just wait until tomorrow. I could probably take a nap, I'm kinda tired anyway."

Link's words seemed to confuse the man, who then said, "Umm, kid, you're not from around here are you? If you don't get inside the Castle Town walls before nightfall, there's big scary monsters and they'll eat you." The man seemed content with his explanation, then he said, "So you'd better hurry."

With that bit of advice, the man passed Link by and began to jog in the vague direction of the Kokiri woods. Of course, he wasn't going there. At least Link hoped, people got lost if they went in there, sometimes bad things happened.

* * *

Link felt that he could handle the monsters of the field, probably. But he decided that making it inside of Castle Town would have more benefits than a night spent in the field. Therefore Link began to walk faster after his encounter with the walking-then-running-man, and he began to run at a full sprint when the velvety light of the sunset spread across the field.

Now he was in a race against the clock, and he was losing. Not only did the sun set too fast, the distance between the forest and Castle Town was farther than the Deku tree had led him to believe. No, there would be no tears now, no time lost in sorrow for the loss of his carefree life. There was no time to be lost.

Link hoped against hope the maybe, just maybe, whoever raised the drawbridge would see him before it was too late. Maybe the sealing of the town would be postponed long enough for him to make it inside.

It wasn't.

Link was more than two hundred yards away from the town when the steady clinking of chains began to alert him of his failure. Link began to shout, yell, and even stoop to screaming in the vain hopes that he would be heard and let into the town.

Nobody heard his calls for help.

The drawbridge grinded closed, sealing him out, just as the forest children had sealed him out.

Link kept running, some part of him refusing to believe that he had failed again, although this one had caused the death of no one. He began to cry, again. When he finally reached the edge of the river, Link was sobbing like a baby, barely able to take in enough air. Now he was alone, completely and helplessly alone. Now there was nobody around. Now he would succumb to all that had happened.

Link sat down by the water, leaning against the stone shoulder high wall, though it would have barely stood to the waist of the running man from earlier that day. Link pulled his knees close to his chest, buried his face in his lap and cried. Cried for the Deku tree. Cried for the Kokiri. Cried for his friend Saria. Then he cried for himself. He had lost the protection of the Deku tree, the forest, his friend, his home. What was he, a forest boy who had been expelled from the forest. What did that make him. He didn't belong anywhere.

Link felt the fairy press herself against the back of his neck. He had almost forgotten about her during the journey. She was saying something, trying to tell him something. She was probably going to tell him that it was all his fault, probably going to blame him just like the Kokiri had, just like the Deku tree should have, like Link himself did.

But now he didn't want to hear any more of it. Link threw his arms over his head, sealing out the fairy's shrill voice. She kept pounding on the back of his neck though. Didn't she get it? He knew that he was to blame. He knew that everybody hated him for what he had failed to do. He knew this because he blamed himself. That he hated himself because he had been too weak and too slow and too afraid to save the Deku tree. The Deku tree, who had survived for… For how long? Probably forever. The Deku tree had probably been alive since the dawn of time itself, and it had died because of Link.

Even as Link delved past self-pity and straight into self-loathing, something shoved him. It wasn't that fairy, what was her name? Navi wasn't it? Anyway, it wasn't her. When she pounded on him, it was scarcely noticeable and easily ignored. Whatever it was that pushed him, it had some mass to it. That single shove sent Link hurtling into the river. He was unprepared for the assault, and as such he was unprepared for the water. Liquid filled his nose and he began choking on the freezing water.

The water wasn't deep, and Link could easily stay afloat once he adjusted to it. Link looked over to where he had been sitting, hoping to find the person who had pushed him. Maybe he could yell at them, let out some of the emotion he was feeling right now. Although he wanted to destroy himself, he still had a job to do.

But when Link turned to face his assailant, his search was met by a pair of burning eyes the color of fiery coals. Around the eyes there was a skull, and below the skull was a body. A skeleton stood on the bank, staring down at Link. The water seemed to grow thick as syrup as Link tried anxiously to push himself away from the monstrosity on the bank. He had fought monsters within the Deku tree, but at least those carried some twisted sense of reality with them. This was like nothing Link had seen before.

Half expecting to be dragged back by a skeletal hand before he reached the far bank, Link struggled to get as far away from the creature as he could. Finally he pulled himself on the far bank and struggled to pull his sword out of the sheath on his back. At least the skeleton was on the other side of the river, if it tried to get to him, Link would have time to slash at it with his sword while it was making its way through the water.

To Link's surprise, the thing took a step forward, then fell into dark water. Link watched for a moment, waiting for it to return to the surface, to begin advancing toward him. But it didn't. The skeleton never rose from the depths of the water. Suddenly a shrill voice blasted in his ear. _Link! Link! There's one over here! Stalchildren! Get them! Get them! Get them!_

Link turned and saw that four of the skele-Stalchildren were standing just a few feet away from him. Link choked down the lump in his throat, brandished his sword, and advanced on the Stalchildren. Remembering the fights inside the Deku tree, Link took the upper hand by attacking before the enemy had a chance to attack. He swung his sword, cutting through the slender spine of the first monster.

Before Link had regained his balance, the second Stalchild swung a bony claw at him. It almost made contact with his shoulder, and it would have left a painful gash, but Link pulled his light wooden shield in front of himself. The claw dug into the shield, sticking in the tough wood. Link pulled the Stalchild closer to him and removed the head from the body. The skeleton fell apart, but Link could still see an inanimate claw sticking in the wooden shield. That would have to wait until later.

_Behind you! _

Link spun around and saw that there were about three Stalchildren standing behind him.

This was going to be a long night.


	3. The Infection

Thanks for your reviews, probably wouldn't have written anything today if I didn't see you guys were reading my other chapter.

Colleen-TJ: Anything worth writing, in my opinion, deserves an introduction. Anyway, u should be getting more of what you want in the next few chapters, as of this chapter, introduction is done, no more of it. Completely original scenes in the next chapter, I promise.

* * *

Link opened his eyes and immediately regretted it, wincing in the light of the late afternoon sun. As he looked around he realized that he was lying on the bank of the river. He slowly sat up, wondering why he was here, half submerged in the frigid water. Then it came to him.

The Stalchildren.

They had been everywhere, surrounding him. The dim light provided by Navi was barely enough to illuminate the battleground, leaving Link in a twilit showdown with dozens upon dozens of Stalchildren. For each monster that he felled, there seemed to be two more waiting to take its place.

His sword arm felt weak, his shield arm was numb from the numerous blows it had taken. At one point Navi had disappeared, leaving Link in total darkness for a moment, then suddenly the light was back again and she was speaking in his ear.

_Link! They're everywhere. As far as I can see they go on forever!_

She was panicking, of course, Link was panicking as well. How could he fight constantly for eight hours straight. He would collapse from exhaustion long before the first rays of the sun came.

Then the idea struck him, the water. When that first Stalchild fell into the water, it never came out. Maybe water killed them!

It was a long shot, but being the only shot he had at survival, Link took it.

He quickly cut down a Stalchild in the direction of where he believed the river to be, then threw himself shield first toward the gap.

Link struggled to keep his feet on the floor as he pushed his way through the throng of adversaries. The sound of crackling bones and snapping teeth could be heard in all directions.

Suddenly the ground gave way under him and he was dropped into the icy cold water.

Link coughed and sputtered, gagging on the frigid water, but he was safe. Link swam to the center of the river, shivering from both fear and the cold. At least they wouldn't get them here.

Putting away his weapons, Link stood in the center of the river, his nose barely above the surface. The cool air rustled through his hair, wicking away any remaining body heat and chilling him to the bone. The longer he stood still in the river, the colder he got.

Navi was hovering just a few feet above his head, shedding light on the entire scene. Hundreds of skeletal hands, groping for Link. Only inches separated him from their grasp.

Link was careful to stay in the center of the river, as far from the claws as he could.

Hours were spent like that, standing on his toes, fear and the frigid water were all that kept him awake. Though his boots had good traction on dry ground, they were worse than useless against the slick riverbed. As the night progressed, Link slowly slid with the current, occasionally tripping on stones and other detritus that had accumulated in the bottom of the river.

When the moon was hidden from sight, something cold and rigid pressed up against Link's back. He tried to turn quickly, but only succeeded in losing his balance and floundering around in the water for a moment. When he had regained his footing, Link turned, slowly this time, and inspected the thing that had touched him. What he saw, by the light of Navi's fluorescent glow, was a set of vertical steel bars that stretched across the river. They formed a grate through which nothing larger than a deku nut could fit.

Link rested against the grate, holding onto the cold metal, watching the treacherous hands reaching for him. The water flowed against him, pushing him constantly against the grate.

Hours passed. The night grew darker, and in the darkness, there were only two sources of light. Navi, who slowly circled Link, watched the ominous mass suspiciously. The other light came from the multitude of amber eyes, burning silently as the watched Link.

The first ray of light surprised Link. It suddenly shot out across the field and landed on the stark white chest of one of the Stalchildren. There was a hissing noise and Link watched through grainy eyes as a small patch of the bleached bone became crisp and black. Suddenly the entire thing caught fire and began screaming. The Stalchild's scream was like nothing Link had ever heard before. It made his stomach crawl in a fear, his eyes wince in pain, all while his ears burned in an effort to escape the horrid sound. Then it was over, the Stalchild crumbled to the ground in a pile of dry grey dust and unearthly blue fire.

The other Stalchildren, who had watched this whole scene intently, suddenly began to scramble amongst themselves. Link watched as each of the skeletons stooped down, dug a hole at its own feet, then dropped into the pit as a pile of inanimate bones.

Exhausted and relieved, Link pulled himself to the edge of the river and flung himself down on the ground. The slowly rising sun was warm against the back of his neck, and he could feel the water slowly dripping out of his tunic. He half expected Navi to scold him for being lazy and sleeping when he should be heading to the castle, but when she didn't interrupt him, he figured she was as tired as he was. After all of that, they both deserved to rest.

* * *

Link quickly checked his equipment, assuring himself that he had lost none of it during the night, then followed the river toward the gate. This time, as he approached, the drawbridge was lowered. Link ran across the thick wooden bridge, passing the sleepy looking guard quickly.

The small alley led Link into a large square. A fountain stood in the center, water falling in streams from the top. The square was crowded, people could be seen everywhere. A small child was chasing an even smaller dog while a large woman watched the pair worriedly. A man and a woman stood by the fountain, their arms wrapped around each other, turning as they whispered to each other. As many as five people were standing by a market stall, shouting and clambering for the newest goods.

Link felt terrified. He had never seen so many people in one place. No, he had never seen so many people, period. All of the Kokiri children added up only came to about twelve, in this market there could have been no less than thirty people. Thirty people talking, filling the air with the indistinct buzzing of their voices. Thirty people restlessly milling about, their footfalls were deafening. Link could see no more than a few feet ahead of himself in the throng of human bodies.

Link slowly advanced through the crowd, trying to get the attention of someone, anyone. He knew that Castle Town lay directly outside the castle, but in which direction? He could see nothing, and had nothing to judge direction by. He was lost in the sea of voices and towering people.

* * *

Link was sitting on the edge of the fountain. His breath was coming in short, rapid pants. Sweat was pouring down his face. His eyes darted back and forth, hoping, pleading for a way out of this madness.

Somebody began to speak in Link's ear, and he jumped. Turning toward the sound, Link saw a girl about his own height. She had dark red hair that fell down past her waist and was wearing a white dress and a yellow scarf. Big blue eyes stared straight into his and seemed to pull him in. The tide of people around them seemed to slow to a crawl, leaving just an indistinct wall of shapes at the edge of Link's vision.

She was speaking again, and this time, Link tried to listen.

"Are you okay?"

She actually seemed to care whether or not he was okay, and she barely even knew him.

Link nodded and then she said, "That's good, you really seemed like you weren't feeling too good. Hey, your clothes! They're…" She paused for a moment as if trying to find the right word, "…different. You're not from around here are you?"

And she had already decided that he didn't belong. Maybe things wouldn't be so different after all.

Anyways, she still seemed to want an answer.

Link shook his head and said slowly, "No, I'm… I'm from the forest…" He lowered his head and stared at his toes, waiting for her scalding response.

She paused for a moment, taking in his words, then she said in a cheerful voice, "Ohh… You're a fairy boy from the forest! My name is Malon! My dad owns Lon Lon Ranch!"

Her cheer seemed contagious, soaking into Link, pulling at the corners of his lips and forcing a smile onto his face.

Then she began to speak again, this time with slightly less enthusiasm.

"Dad went to the castle to deliver some milk, and he hasn't come back yet…"

Navi, who had been perched on Links shoulder the whole while, suddenly started to whisper excitedly into his ear.

_The castle! Did you hear that? If her dad is there, then maybe she knows where it is. You should ask her._

When a fairy gets excited, it pulsates and its color changes radically.

Both Malon and Link were staring at the rippling ball of neon yellow light that was hovering above Link's shoulder.

"What's your fairy saying?" Malon asked curiously.

"We're looking for the castle, she said I should ask you for directions."

Malon seemed to think for a second, then she said," I'll give you directions, but you have to do something for me. Would you mind finding my dad? He must have fallen asleep around the castle. What a thing for an adult to do." She giggled a little, then continued, "But he's probably sleeping really deep, like, um, like he's under a magic spell. I'll bet you know all about those, fairy boy, but the only thing that he needs to break this one, is a cucco's crow." She began to dig into her pocket, and seemed to be fishing around for something.

Link had to admit, she had scared him a little bit when used the words magic spell, he had had enough of magic, especially curses, which was probably the only type of magic that would make somebody sleep like that. Curses could do other things too, things like killing the Deku tree.

Normally, just the thought of the Deku tree would have made him unbearably sad, but this time it didn't. Maybe it was because he wasn't lonely this time.

Malon finally found what she was looking for, and pulled a brown egg out of her pocket. "Good thing I've been holding onto this. It's a cucco's egg. I've been incubating it here in my pocket. It's going to hatch soon I just know it, anyway, you can kinda feel the little guy squirming around in there. You just gotta be careful with it and don't drop it or anything." She handed the egg over to Link and he stared at it for a moment. He could feel something moving around inside.

The girl giggled then said, "Okay, now I'll give you directions. Listen carefully." She leaned in close to Link so that he could hear every word. Link was prepared to memorize the next few words she said. Malon turned halfway around and pointed her finger directly behind her. "Step one, go that way." She was silent for a moment, then she began to speak again. "Step two, bring me back my cucco, I'll see you tomorrow fairy boy." A wide grin was spread across her face, and just as before, it had infected Link.


	4. Walking with Ghosts

I made sure to put some original content in this one, but I just want you to know that pretty much everything before the temple of time is meant to be an intro in one way or another. But don't worry, after this there should only be a few more chapters before Link gets completely messed up. :D Anyway, I'm really very sorry for the delay, but my internet is being really spotty. So I'll be uploading two chapters tonight, plus a the start of a second story since I don't know when I will be able to next. Thanks for reading, hope you enjoy it.

* * *

"Kid, can't let you in here, royal family don't like people trampin' around on their grass and stirrin' up trouble."

"But, you've gotta let me in!" Link pleaded, "I've gotta see the princess, the Deku tree told me to talk to her!"

Creases of confusion showed on the man's shadowed face. "The, uh, Deku tree? Never heard of 'em." The man turned to the guard next to him, chuckled then said, "This kid says he's been talkin' to trees." The second guard smirked then said, "I heard it too, you think maybe we should send this kid down to that new hospital they're setting up in kakariko."

The first guard seemed confused, saying, "What hospital, huh? Oh, you're talkin' bout that funny farm ain't ya" The guard snickered while the second man turned to Link.

"But seriously, we can't let you in here. You'd better head back home."

Link turned around, frustrated. He dragged his feet as he walked away from the guards. There had to be some way to get into the castle. There just had to be. He hadn't come all this way just to be stopped by a couple of guards.

As Link rounded the corner, Navi began to whisper in his ear. She was saying something about plants. Climbing

Sneaking

Stealth

Link liked her plan.

* * *

The sun was gone, descended past the tiled roofs of Castle Town.

No longer was it night, but early morning, close to five o'clock.

Few were awake. Even fewer were still out and about.

An avid stargazer

A thief

A hero

Link was careful to press himself low to the ground, careful not to break the cover of darkness. Navi had hidden herself beneath his hat, not daring to show off her brilliant light, not now. A guard was walking across the top of the gate.

From this distance, Link could hear him grumbling about something, probably this late night shift.

Link hid behind the strange stone that had the density of soft earth, yet seemed ancient and tough. A moment later, the guard's irritable monologue faded to a murmur. A moment after that, Link was stealing toward the bridge, from there he would climb down to the ground somehow. Then the easy part was over.

* * *

Time is both the friend and the enemy of one engaged in stealth.

Time would grant the passing of guards. It would grant the loss of patience, vigilance, and energy.

Time would also inevitably bring the morning sun.

Link had passed by several sets of guards. He had climbed a stone wall. He had dropped himself into yet another river. He had dragged himself out again, soaked and freezing.

And now he was waiting.

Waiting, probably the hardest trial he had ever endured.

As it turned out, it wasn't only the guards' patience that was worn away during the night.

When he had passed the river, Link had encountered a man. This man had a large brown mustache which more than made of up for the lack of hair on the top of his head. He wore large wrinkled overhauls with a red shirt beneath them. Link assumed that this man was Malon's father, because he was asleep, and he was snoring.

Link was left at an impasse. Malon's father was asleep, and Link could see a set of keys gripped tightly in his hands. The only door that Link could see, a heavy looking metal door, was locked. A sign beside it had the word _Deliveries_ written on it. The only way in was presumably impassable until Malon's dad was awakened.

And the egg hadn't hatched yet.

Link had tried to awaken the man. He had shaken him. Asked him politely to please _wake up_!

Link had even tried to crow like he imagined a cucoo might. Link had never seen a cucoo before, but he had seen other birds, and he had heard other birds crow.

Link thought of the time he had first laid eyes on the Deku tree as he had been during his last few days. The once vibrantly red wood of the Deku tree's bark had faded to a hollow looking grey. A spot of mold and dozens of mushrooms had sprouted from the base of the tree. And the birds, they had been everywhere. Ravens had been perched in the Deku tree's branches, the branches of the surrounding trees, the Deku tree's roots, and even upon the bare ground.

They seemed to be waiting for the Deku tree to die, so they could feast upon the rotted flesh of death. But there would be no meat for them, they must have known this. They had come because of the feeling in the air, the quiet, knowing rustle of the surrounding trees. They had come because of the smell that floated on the air. They had come for the powerful stench of death that soaked out of the Deku tree.

As Link had walked into the Deku tree's clearing, thousands of beady black eyes turned to him. They were watching him, drilling in the horrible news that the Deku tree spoke. As the Deku tree opened himself up for Link's feeble attempt to save his life, the ravens were startled and began to crow. It was a dark, sickly sound that reminded Link of death and ripping flesh. But it hadn't then, no, the first time he heard a raven crow, he had been an innocent child. Not knowing the darker sides of anything.

Even after Link croaked at him a few times, Malon's dad never even shifted. Finally, Link decided that he would need to wait for the cucoo to hatch, so he sat down against one of the large wooden crates that surrounded the man. Large black words were painted on the sides of each box, _Lon Lon Milk_.

As Link settled down to wait for the cucoo egg to hatch, his thoughts returned from the back of his head. His curiosity burned as he wondered why. And more importantly, he wondered if.

But first the why.

Why did Malon seem to care about him? Why did she come over to see if he was okay? That was the type of thing that Saria did, had done. But she barely knew Link. Why should she care about him? He was a total stranger. An outsider, just as he had been among the Kokiri.

Link wondered if, maybe, just maybe, Malon would be his friend. Link had done terrible things, been unable to stop terrible things, but he still needed a friend, at least one.

Link looked up to the sky, staring at the slowly moving clouds, watching as they drifted on and left his sight. The Deku tree had mention something about goddesses, something about how they controlled everything or something like that. Maybe, maybe if he prayed to them, asked them a lot, maybe Malon would be his friend.

Link closed his eyes again, sending silent thoughts to the goddesses, wherever they might be. _Please, please let Malon be my friend. Please._

As if it was an answer to his prayer, Link heard a sound coming from his pocket. Reaching his hand toward to noise, he pulled out a small bird. It was yellow, and it fit in the center of his palm. He looked at it, holding it just in front of his face. The tiny bird was struggling to pluck the last bits of shell from its still wet feathers. He watched as the bird finally removed the last piece of shell, then went to work cleaning its feathers and removing the liquid from them.

After a few minutes, the tiny cucoo had completely dried itself. It was impatiently pacing back and forth on Link's hand, and it seemed to be trying to figure out what the edge of his hand was.

Suddenly Navi pulled on his ear. _Hurry up and put it down on the ground before it tries to jump. You don't want to hurt that little girl's cucoo, do you?_

No, he didn't. Link compliantly placed the tiny bird on the floor, and watched as it slowly walked over to Malon's dad. It stood close to his head and began to peep insistently.

For a moment, Link thought that the wait had been for nothing, but then the man began to stir. "Ugh," He murmured in his sleep, "Wait, are the eggs hatching? I thought they'd be at least another couple a days…" Malon's dad sat up and opened his eyes.

He seemed confused. He looked at Link, then at the tiny bird that was still peeping, then back at Link. "Eh, is this little guy yours?" He asked bewilderedly. Link shook his head then said, "Nope, Malon gave him to me, she asked me to look for you. She said that you'd only wake up if you heard a cucoo."

Suddenly, the man's eyes went wide and he said, "What? Malon was looking for me? Oh I'm gunna catch it from her now. I messed up bad leaving Malon behind to wait for me." The man seemed to be in a full panic now, "She's really gunna let me have it!" The man jumped up from where he had been seated and bolted off in the direction of Castle Town.

Navi flew down and fluttered by the ground. _Wow, I guess somebody's gotta be the brains in the family. And I'll bet it's not him. I mean look at this. He ran off so quick that he forgot those keys he was holding AND that little cucoo. You said it was his didn't you? He knew it was his and he still left it here. It's lucky for him that she seemed like a nice person. I guess you'll have to return his keys after this too._

After Navi had finished her talking, Link scooped up the baby cucoo and the keys. Since the tiny bird refused to be placed back in his pocket, Link was forced to hold it in his hand. It took just a moment for Link to find the right key to the door, and then he was inside the castle.

After he exited the delivery area, Navi led him through some corridors and then into a garden area. Guards were patrolling in strict patterns. Still, it was hard to be stealthy while holding a tiny peeping bird.

* * *

Several hours later, Link was standing outside Castle Town. The strange Sheikah named Impa had taken it upon herself to guide Link out of the castle. But Link had finally reached the princess. She explained something about a man named Ganondorf, and two more spiritual stones, and something called the triforce. Apparently he was supposed to pass through the nearby village of kakariko on the way to his next stop at Death Mountain.

But first, he needed to pay a visit to Lon Lon Ranch. And Malon.

It was a short walk to the ranch. Just a few hundred yards away, and since it was still only late morning, he wouldn't have to worry about Stalchildren. When he reached the ranch, he was still holding the tiny peeping bird in his hand. He had been holding it ever since Malon's dad had run off. Despite the seriousness of the situation, both Link and the princess had been on the verge of bursting out in laughter during the whole conversation.

It took Link only a moment to find Malon. She was standing out in the center of the field. There was a small horse standing next to her, though Link couldn't tell if it was a pony or if it was simply young. As he approached her, he could hear her singing, though it was a song he had never heard before.

She heard him approaching and spun around to face him. "Oh, it's the fairy boy again!" She was still smiling, and Link began to smile as well. "Your cucoo hatched, and I brought it back like you asked." Like said, holding the tiny bird out in front of him. The cucoo was currently deciding whether or not he was food, and Link was struggling not to flinch, because the bird, tiny was it was, had a sharp beak. Malon watched the bird and giggled, "You'd better take him to my dad before he eats the rest of you. But you've got to promise you'll come back and play with me right afterwards!"

Link promised, and she told him where he could find her dad. Link found her dad where she had said he would be, sitting inside the house, surrounded by cucoos. "Um," Link said, not sure how to address Malon's dad. "Oh you're the kid from this morning," Malon's dad said," I can't thank you enough, I don't even know how long I was asleep before you came and found me." Link heard Navi mutter, _I'll bet Malon knows…_

The man reached his hand out to Link and said," My names Talon, but you can just call me Mr. Cucoo, 'cause I'm watching these birds twenty-four seven." Link shook the man's hand and said his own name. Then he held out the bird and the keys and said, "Well, Mr. umm, Cucoo, I brought you your keys, and that baby cucoo. You forgot them when you ran off this morning."

Talon seemed surprised that Link had his keys and instantly checked his pockets. "Wow, I did leave them. Thanks kid. You saved me an earful from Malon and those guards up at the castle. Probably would've made hell for me if I lost my keys. They can't just go around handin' out keys to everyone." Talon took the keys and the bird from Links hand, and then went back to what he had been doing before.

Just as Link shut the door behind him, Navi began to talk. _I just can't stand that guy._

Link was shocked. He looked at the fairy and asked, "Why? What's wrong with him? He's a little different but, that's no reason to hate him."

_What's wrong with him? I'll tell ya what's wrong with him. I know his type. He's lazy, he gets himself into trouble and he just expects other people to fix it for him, or at the very least tell him what to do. What kind of parent is he anyway? He just left his daughter to wait for him in the middle of Castle Town for goddesses know how long._

Link wasn't quite sure what to say, but he felt like he should defend the man in some way. "Well, you don't know that. He can't be that lazy if he cares for all those cucoos in there. There were tons of them. And anyway, maybe he didn't just leave her waiting there. Maybe he left her with one of his friends or something, and she just wanted to be out in the market?"

_What do you know about cucoos? You'd never even seen one until that one hatched this morning. Do you even know what it takes to care for them? You pour food on the ground and that's about it. And yeah, maybe he did leave her with some friends or something, even if he didn't you'll still find a way to defend that guy just 'cause you like his daughter._

Link turned to the fairy, his cheeks feeling warm.

"Like? I do not. I just want her to be my friend." Link said.

Navi was silent, and so was Link. It was lucky for him that Malon was still out of earshot.

Not for long though. Before Navi could say anything else, Link shouted Malon's name and ran up to her. The horse that was next to her shied away as he neared, but he didn't notice much.

* * *

Link had no idea where Malon was.

They were playing hide-and-seek, but Link didn't know any of the good hiding spots on the ranch. Whenever Malon hid, it took Link close to thirty minutes to find her, but every time Link hid, Malon found him almost immediately.

Wait, maybe that was her.

Link had seen a lock of red disappear behind a box. He had only seen it in the corner of his vision, so there was no way to be sure unless he checked.

The box was next to the barn, so if Malon was there, there would be no escape.

Link slowly crept up to the box, and then when he was within arm's reach, he jumped around the side of it. Malon was nowhere to be seen.

But he could have sworn that he saw her here.

Link looked closer at the box, and realized that it was empty and therefore very light. He decided that maybe he should try to move it. He pressed up against the box and it slid with surprisingly little effort.

There was a missing portion of boards behind where the box had been.

As Link moved closer to the hole, he began to hear the sounds of suppressed laughter. Very quickly, Link stuck his head through the hole and almost shouted when he saw Malon's face just a couple of inches from his own.

She seemed shocked too, but was trying to hold in laughter as well.

"Hurry, get in here. I don't want anyone else to see the hole." Malon said in a hushed voice.

As quickly as he could, Link crawled through the hole and pulled the crate into the place where it had been.

Link let out a little chuckle before asking, "Is this where you've been hiding every time?"

Malon nodded and smiled, "Well, I moved around a little bit, you know, to make it fair. I always do this, it's never any fun when you get caught really quick, and I'm really lousy at finding a new spot each time."

Link smiled with her then said, "Well, now that I know your secret, why shouldn't I just tell everyone. I mean all the kids in the world." Link began to whisper, as if he was telling a great big secret, "Hey everyone, guess what I found out, Malon hides in a hole in the barn. It's behind the crate, you know, the really light one."

Malon started laughing, but she did all she could to keep it quiet.

"No don't, don't tell them. What do you want? I'll do anything; just don't tell them where my hiding spot is." She said in hushed tones.

"Um…"Link said exaggeratedly, pretending to think long and hard about the question. "That song you were singing, how 'bout you teach that to me?

She seemed a little bit surprised by the request. "You mean the one I was singing when you snuck up being me?"

Link nodded

"Well I didn't know you sing fairy boy." She smiled at the name, and he could help but smile along with her.

He wasn't smiling on the inside though, not at that moment.

Why hadn't he thought this through more? He didn't sing, he didn't even know how to sing. Why did he ask her to teach him to sing a song if he didn't know how to sing.

Suddenly Navi chimed in, speaking abnormally loud so that both children could hear her.

_No, but he has an ocarina, you could teach him to play it on that!_

Stupid fairy. She was probably still mad about the argument earlier, but that was like, a long time ago. Why couldn't she just let it go.

"Ooh, I've never seen an ocarina before. Okay, I'll teach it to you." Malon whispered, "But not here, out in the field, and I can introduce you to my friend Epona."

Well, at least Link didn't have to sing.

* * *

They were standing in the center of the field.

The small horse (not a pony), who had been introduced as Epona, was warily circling the two children.

"Okay, are you ready? I'll try singing the first part for you." Malon said.

A moment later she began to sing.

She sang three notes in a row, and Link struggled to match them on Saria's ocarina. After the third or fourth time, he was able to make the notes sound smooth.

"That sounds nice fairy boy. So you just do that part twice, then there's this part." She began to sing again, though she sang a different part of the song.

This part used most of the same notes, so it was easier to learn it than the first part. Link had mastered it by the third time he played it.

"Then you just string it together and that's it." Malon said. "Why don't you try playing it while I sing?

Link smiled and nodded. In just a moment, the sound of the song began to echo around the field. The song sounded so upbeat, but Link could detect a trace of sadness. Maybe it was just the way he was playing it. Maybe he had just learned it wrong.

As he listened, though, he realized that the sadness was not, in fact, coming from his ocarina, but from Malon. He continued playing, but he looked over at Malon, and saw a sad look in her eyes. No, not quite sad, closer to curious. Maybe even lonely.

Lonely, the thought of the word, made him think of Saria, and how he was playing the song on her ocarina. He began to wonder again, just why she had given the ocarina to him. She was always playing it. Deep within the lost woods, she would sit and play her song for hours. Often, the sound of Saria's ocarina was the only thing that kept him from getting lost in the woods. Maybe that was what it meant. Maybe giving away her ocarina meant that she would no longer play it in the lost woods. She would no longer guide Link to her or the Kokiri. Link knew that he had figured it out; the ocarina had been Saria's way of saying that he was no longer welcome.

Link felt a tear slip out of the corner of his eye, and he stopped playing for a moment to wipe it away.

Malon stopped singing just a moment after him and looked over at him worriedly. "Fairy boy, are you okay?" She walked over to him and saw that he was crying (he wasn't it was ONE tear, one tear is not crying) and asked him, "What's wrong? Why are you crying?" Link finished wiping the tear out of his eye, coughed away the lump in his throat, and then said, "That song, it just made me think of this friend I used to have. We don't talk anymore, we can't really talk anymore. She was my only friend and now she's not, so now I have no friends."

She listened, and then said softly, "Oh, this song always makes me think of my mom. She wrote it for me. That was before she… before she died. But don't worry, even if you can't talk to your other friend anymore, you'll still have me, 'cause I'll always be your friend fairy boy."

Link felt that the tears were done, so he looked up at Malon and said, "Well, I'll always be your friend too."

They both smiled then.


	5. The Inconstant

Since it was so late by the time the two children had finished playing, Talon allowed Link to spend the night. There were only three rooms in the house, so Link slept in the barn's loft. Talon seemed concerned that it would get too cold during the night, but Link reassured him by saying that he had slept in a tree house ever day of his life.

Talon seemed confused when Link said this, but Malon cleared things up by saying, "He's a fairy boy, you know, from the forest. I guess they all sleep in tree houses there.

At this point, Link didn't feel like mentioning that he had been the only one who slept in a tree house.

He had preferred his tree house to the stocky wooden huts because it always let the cool night air slip over him while he slept. Sleeping in the loft might be just like being back at home.

It wasn't.

The more time Link spent outside the forest, the more differences between the two worlds became apparent. The night air was much colder than it had been within the forest. Maybe it had been the Deku tree, maybe it was just the presence of trees.

Anyway, the barn's loft was at least twenty degrees colder than his tree house had been. Link had curled himself up in the corner and was struggling to keep his teeth from chattering. The animals below seemed to be dealing with the temperature much better than Link was.

The freezing air seemed to have chilled Link's brain past its capacity for rational thought. His mind was flitting back and forth between thoughts. Never sticking with any single idea for more than a moment. Surely, if this continued, Link would go insane.

His eyes were jammed closed, whether it was from the cold or the increasingly grim thoughts. Either way, Link was trapped within his own mind, at least for the time being. He knew that there would be an end, that the sunrise must follow the sunset. He knew that it would get better, but it seemed like the ice cold prison must go on forever.

His thoughts, yes, those were the things that were pounding within his head. His thoughts never seemed to stay put, not for more than a moment.

The Deku tree, guilt, the forest, the regret, loneliness…

Was this insanity? Being trapped in a downward spiral with no conceivable way out?

Stalchildren, monsters, the fear, the anger, loneliness…

Could the spiral go on forever? Surely it must stop at some point. Mustn't it?

The darkness, the unknown, the fear, cowering, a towering enemy, loneliness…

Link tried to pull himself out of his mind, struggled to return to that chilled night air. That frozen state of consciousness. Anything was preferable to this. This was a straight road into insanity.

Loss, Saria, Fear, the unknown, regret, the Deku tree, loneliness…

Loneliness…

This overbearing weight that Link felt pressing down on him, could it go on forever, surely there was an end in sight.

This wild ride into his own mind left Link temporarily blind, blind to the future, blind to all but pain and its many different brands.

Pain, fear, hate, anger, loneliness, loss, regret, loneliness, guilt…

* * *

Malon had awoken late in the night. Feeling restless and lonely, she decided to check on her friend. Maybe he was awake as well, wanting company but instead left with the company of himself.

Malon had been left in that situation many times before, and she did not intend to leave her new friend in that situation.

She quietly snuck out of the house, careful to avoid the creaking floorboards and the squealing hinges as much as possible.

A few minutes after waking up, Malon had left the house, and was standing on the first floor of the barn. Above her, she could hear the rafters beneath the loft shaking. She decided that the fairy boy must be cold, so she returned to the house to fetch him a blanket.

* * *

Pain, fear, loneliness, cold, cold…

The empty blackness was growing within Link. Fear took control of him, responding to the dark threat that lurked in the back of Link's mind. It was there, it had always been there, but it was not strong enough to do any real damage. The shadow wasn't deep enough or black enough to be real, but soon it would be…

Link could feel his body shaking, could hear his teeth chattering in response to the outside cold. Link's mind was spinning, shaking, slipping down a spiral that he could not or would not stop, no, not yet. He couldn't stop this before it reached the end. He knew how it would end, it would end with Link being destroyed. Not his body, for the flesh and the blood would still act just as they always had. Except that now, they truly would be acting. He would be broken, blackened and twisted. Decayed inside.

Prolonged exposure to your own conscience can do that to a person.

Link, who was already cracked by the loss of his home and the guilt of his unfulfilled promise to the Deku tree. For Link, that destruction began almost immediately.

Suddenly Link began to feel warm. The frozen core of his being was turning back to normal. His consciousness returned from the black depths of his inner self, returned to the child's very own body.

He was shivering, but his teeth were no longer chattering uncontrollably. Link heard a child's voice say softly, "I should have known you would be this cold. But its okay, I'm here, and I made you warm."

The bearer of the voice departed from the loft, leaving behind only warmth.

Warmth of two kinds, both inside and out. Physical warmth, the type that came from the blanket. And comfortable emotional warmth.

Link knew that someone cared about him.

* * *

The next morning, Link left the ranch early in the morning.

He wanted to be able to retrieve the spiritual stone from the Gorons quickly so he could return soon.

He made a point to leave after the sunrise though, since he didn't want to chance another encounter with the legions of Stalchildren.

Although he had left as early as he safely could, there was already movement at the ranch. Ingo, the ranch hand, had come into the barn and milked the cows.

Link left just as the ranch hand moved on to letting the horses out into the pasture.

"Hey kid," The man growled, "Get outa' my way, try not to scare the horses will ya?"

"Sorry, um, mister…" Link had trailed off.

"My names Ingo, now just get outa' here." He growled again.

Link did just as Ingo said, and quickly left the barn, careful to stay out of the man's way as he led the horses outside.

Just when Link was about to walk out the front gate, he heard Malon's voice from behind him and he turned to face her. She was carrying a bucket in one hand while the other was poised playfully on her hip.

"Leaving already fairy boy?" She said, "I thought we were gunna play some more."

"I want to, but I have some stuff I have to do. I promise I'll come back as soon as it's done."

"Oh, well what kind of stuff?" She asked curiously.

"Um, well, I've just gotta go save the world." He said, it was true, probably. "Bye, I'll be back as soon as I can."

Just before he turned to leave, Link saw Malon's eyes grow wide with curiosity.

"What do you mean you're gunna save the world?" She asked hurriedly.

"I've really gotta go, but I'll tell you when I get back." He said over his shoulder.

"You promise?" She shouted to him, since he was now more than twenty feet away and just about to leave the ranch.

Link turned around one last time and shouted "Of course!" before disappearing past the walls of the ranch.

* * *

Link was tired of hiking uphill.

He was tired of the monsters that seemed to be half spider half grasshopper.

But most of all, he was tired of the constant boulders tumbling down the mountain, waiting to crush him beneath their immense weight.

Yes, Link was tired of almost dying.

He had, mistakenly, assumed that the monsters within the Deku tree were only because of the curse and that those would be the only ones he would see.

All the Deku tree had said was that he would need to talk to the princess.

All the princess had said was that Link would need to collect the spiritual stones.

Neither one of them had mentioned monsters, danger, sleepless nights, or half ton boulders hurtling down a hill at incredible speeds.

Those were, at least in Link's book, things that were worth mentioning.

But it didn't really matter what happened along the way, all Link cared about was making up for how he had failed the Deku tree and all of the Kokiri. He needed to collect the spiritual stone from the Gorons, then he needed to find the last one. Then he was done. Hyrule would be saved and disaster would be averted. That was enough to make up for the Deku tree's death, wasn't it?

As he dodged boulders and jumping monsters, Link decided that once the spiritual stone were collected, he would be done with his quest to make up for the Deku tree's death. His debt would be paid.

Link climbed Death Mountain, slowly coming closer to fixing what he had done.

* * *

Link was in the lost woods again.

He had never seen the tall stone doorway that led to the Goron's city before, but now here he was. Back in the lost woods.

And better yet, he could hear an ocarina off in the distance. Link hurried through the many passages of the labyrinthine woods, following the sweet sound that reminded him of friendship and home.

It was a false feeling and he knew it, but Link looked for Saria anyway. She had condemned him and blamed him just as the rest had. She had even pushed him out of the Kokiri forest and more or less said that he was no longer welcome.

But maybe, just maybe, if he told her that he was doing everything he could to make up for it. That he was going through danger, fighting monsters, and braving the world outside of the forest, just to stop whatever had killed the Deku tree. Maybe then, she would forgive him. Out of all the Kokiri children, if only she would forgive him, then it would be okay.

Finally, he had found the source of the music.

Saria was sitting on a tree stump, her eyes closed, playing her ocarina. The song she had written herself was flowing out of the ocarina, each note sweeter to Link's ears than the last.

He just watched her silently for a few moments, afraid that if he broke the silence, she would begin to blame him again, and that she would begin to hate him just as the others had.

Finally, Link did what he knew he needed to do, and he said her name.

"Saria…"Link murmured softly.

She didn't look up, didn't notice his words.

He choked down the lump in his throat, and spoke again, "Saria."

She opened her eyes, looked him, and smiled.

She jumped up from the stump, dropping her ocarina on the soft forest floor.

Running over to him, she wrapped her arms around him in an embrace.

"Link, I missed you." She said before releasing him and asking, "What was it like outside the forest?"

Link was shocked, what had happened to her hating him, blaming him, and exiling him from his home?

"Um, well, adults are really big. Like, way bigger than anyone you've ever seen before. Not as big as the Deku tree was, but…" Link trailed off, all too aware of what he had said. Even if she had forgotten for a moment, surely that would have reminded her of all that had happened.

"I'm, I'm sorry. It was my fault," Link began, doing anything that would postpone the inevitable.

"I should have been able to stop it, should have been able to save the Deku tree. I know you blame me, everyone blames me. But I just want you to know that I blame me too, I'm trying to make up for it…"

She seemed sad and a little confused for a moment, then said, "No, no Link I don't blame you. I can't speak for some of the others, but I know that it wasn't your fault. The Deku tree was going to die no matter what you did. You just gave him a better death by getting rid of the curse. You shouldn't blame yourself either, it wasn't your fault. But, just how are you trying to make up for it? She asked, her curiosity getting the best of her.

"The Deku tree was cursed because, this, this evil man wanted to take the Spiritual stone of the forest from him, but the Deku tree wouldn't give it to him. So the Deku tree gave it to me, and he told me to go to Hyrule castle and talk to a princess named Zelda…" Link explained the entire story to Saria. He told her about the, the goddesses, Ganondorf, the triforce, and the spiritual stones. He finished with, "And, actually, that was part of why I came here. I didn't want to, 'cause, I thought you were mad at me. But, well, I need you to teach me the song you play on your ocarina. Please? It would help me on my quest, and I'm not sure what else I can do."

"Of course Link." She said, picking up her ocarina from where she had dropped it.

"First, you put your fingers like this." She said, demonstrating the placement on her own ocarina.

* * *

Link was happy that Saria wasn't mad at him, and that she didn't blame him for killing the Deku tree. But she was wrong, he did need to blame himself. Even if the whole point of his venture within the Deku tree was to alleviate the ancient tree's pain. Link could have cut of several dozen more minutes of what must have been excruciating pain.

Link played Saria's song for Darunia, king of the Gorons. It worked like a charm, curing the large Goron of his ill temper. A few minutes later, Link was descending the mountain again, feeling stronger due to the magical bracelet that was a gift from the king of the Gorons.

An explosion and one long walk later, Link was standing in a blistering cavern. Open pits of lava filled the room. Some type of monster with a disconcerting rotating eye mounted on a shaft was poised in the center of the room. The disembodied head of a massive scaled beast was mounted on the wall opposite.

Link was in Dodongo Cavern.

He was just one step closer to curing his guilt.


	6. Release

Those great big beady eyes were staring down at him.

But Link couldn't help looking far beyond the towering Goron.

He could see the sky.

Link had been underground for nearly two days. Seeing by the flickering light of torches and the somber yet deadly glow of shimmering lava.

By comparison, the clear light of early morning was beautiful. The sun shining down from the sky, the sky itself, the clouds. Link never thought he would miss anything as much as he had missed the sky during those two days.

Darunia the Goron king was talking to him, Link realized. He did his best to pay attention but his attention was continually pulled away by the sky. The beautiful sky.

The muscular Goron was saying something about brothers, about the king of Hyrule, and then he was holding out a brilliant red jewel to Link.

This was what Link had come for, the spiritual stone of fire. Death Mountain's secret treasure, the Goron's ruby.

Link took the stone in his hand, the inlaid gold was cool to the touch.

Before Link could wrap the stone in a rag and place it carefully in his backpack, just like the one that had been given to him by the Deku tree, the ground began to shake.

It was over in a moment, Link saw a Goron standing just a few feet away from him. It was holding both its arms out toward Link. Disconcerted, Link took a step away from the Goron, only to feel an impact directly behind him.

Link narrowly avoided the grasp of a second Goron, and began to run, the ruby still clenched in his hand. Just when his freedom was within his grasp, a third Goron dropped in front of him, blocking the path down the mountain. What was happening? He had cleared out the Dodongo's cavern just as they had asked, why wouldn't they let him leave?

Something, presumably a fourth Goron, struck the ground just beside Link, knocking him from his feet. He quickly rolled away from the Goron, dodging around it and running farther uphill. Maybe he could find an alternate way off of the mountain.

After Link had escaped the Gorons, Navi explained what Darunia had said, knowing that he hadn't been listening. She guided him to the peak of the mountain, where they had finally found the fountain of the Great Fairy.

With very little convincing, she had somehow magically enhanced Link's abilities with the sword.

As Link left the Great Fairy's fountain, Link was greeted by a monstrous owl that was much taller than himself.

He had met the owl before, whose name was Keapora Gaebora.

"So," The owl said, twisting its head in a disconcerting way. "It has been a while young one."

Link pulled one of his hands into a fist, trying to release his discomfort.

"Yes, of course it has, you seem so much stronger than you did before. You seem older." The bird almost purred.

"But not old enough, no, the role you are destined to fill is destined for one much older, much stronger."

Link had no idea what the owl was trying to say, so he remained silent, trying to shrink into nothing.

"Anyways, that role is not for a long time, very far away. But you must prepare, you cannot grow unless you let yourself, and at this time, you are not strong enough to grow. But there is time young one. Not as much as there was before, but there is time. You must find the final stone. Have you any idea where you could find it?"

Link muttered something, then said, "No…"

The owl seemed unfazed, yet somehow disappointed.

"Is it possible that the answer is within you, within your own mind, yet somehow hidden? Blocked from the view of your inner eye by something which distracts you?"

The owl seemed to be making a statement instead of posing a question.

Link didn't understand what Kaepora Geabora was trying to get at, but he understood the concept of the answer being in his mind.

"Well, as soon as I can get off this mountain I can start thinking about where the last stone is." He said.

"I am heading away from the mountain myself, if you hold onto by talons I can carry you down." The large bird said to Link's dismay. Out of all the dangerous things he had done and was surely yet to do, holding onto the talons of a flying bird was not something he wanted to do.

But there was no way out of it.

He walked slowly toward the bird and wrapped each of his hands around one of the bird's ankles.

Its wings began to flap and Link felt himself behind pulled off of the ground.

He instantly looked down and saw the ground falling away from his feet. He saw the crater of Death Mountain slipping away. The few Gorons on the mountain seemed as ants. He could see Kakariko village slowly becoming smaller and smaller as the distance increased.

Suddenly the owl's voice was inside his head. His ears were completely bypassed and Link could feel Keapora Geabora voice itching within his mind.

"The field, or elsewhere!" the owl's thought burned in his mind.

Completely shocked, Link screamed out his answer several moments later.

"The Ranch!"

Once again, though this time it was within his own mind, Link could sense the Owl's disappointment and slight frustration.

Then a feeling, or maybe it was a thought, of consent slipped into Link's mind.

The air was cold and it burned Link's eyes and cheeks.

Suddenly he felt something solid strike his body, and then Link was rolling across the grassy field of Lon Lon Ranch.

He continued rolling for a few moments, eventually coming to rest against one of the fences.

Everything around him was spinning. The green of the grass melded with the blue sky. Something red and white was standing over him, speaking his name.

"Link…"

Something was pressed against his head, something warm and soft. It was smelling him.

Link opened his eyes and everything began to slowly swim into focus. Malon was standing over him, worry filling her big blue eyes. Epona was pressing her nose against his forehead.

He tried to stand up, but fell over at once.

The second time he tried, he pulled himself up by the fence. Holding himself steady with the wooden framework, Link was able to maintain his balance.

Suddenly Malon was talking to him, saying more than just his name.

"Link! Link what happened! Are you okay?"

Link realized that she was near to hysteric and that she would likely descend into tears if he didn't say something.

"I'm fine." He said, then coughed, which must have made it seem like he was "not-fine".

"Fine! How are you fine?" She was in hysterics now. "You just fell out of the sky and then crashed into the fence!"

"I can explain." He said, trying to calm her down, "Seriously, I'm fine, just let me tell you."

"Ok fine, just tell me? And it'd better be a good story." She said, with a nervous smile.

Link told her about the Deku tree, the expulsion from his home, about Saria and the ocarina. He told her about meeting the princess, beginning the quest for the two remaining stones, the Gorons, and his venture into Dodongo's Cavern. He showed her the two stones and explained that there was only one more to find.

Finally he told him about Keapora Gaebora, the large speaking owl that had been following him since his first day outside the forest. The story of the bird led to him being dropped in the center of Lon Lon Ranch.

Malon listened, wide-eyed, as Link told her the whole story, beginning to present. When he finished, she was speechless for a moment, before saying, "Wow! You really did all those things?"

Link nodded.

"But, you must've been really scared. Weren't you? I mean, I've never even seen a monster and they scare me." She said.

Link nodded again.

"But I need to do it."

She seemed puzzled for a moment.

"But, why can't someone else do it? Someone like a soldier who knows how to do this?"

"Because _I_ need to do it." Link said, "I'm doing this to make up for what I wasn't able to do before. When I was inside the Deku tree, if only I had cured him faster, maybe he wouldn't have died. Maybe the only reason he died was because I wasn't fast enough. Maybe if I can get the other spiritual stones for princess Zelda, then I'll have made up for it…"

Malon was quiet. She had known the fairy boy only for a few days, but with each passing minute, he seemed to be older than he was. Now she realized that the boy had a conscience that was more suited to an adult than a ten year old boy.

But she had to find a way to comfort him, he was one of her only friends and he was feeling deeply guilty over something that wasn't his fault.

So she told him that.

"Fairy boy," She said, apparently interrupting his ongoing monologue. "You didn't kill the, uh, Deku tree, did you?"

He seemed flustered, he always seemed flustered when she asked him a question. But more so this time.

"No, but if…" He began, before Malon cut him off again.

"No, you didn't kill it, but you did your best."

"But it wasn't good enough, if only…" She cut him off for a third time.

"You did your best, and that's all that matters. Maybe the Deku tree died anyway, but that's not your fault, its Ganondorf's. Ganondorf killed him, he should feel guilty not you."

The fairy boy seemed to have trouble accepting the idea.

"Are you saying that, since it's not my fault, I don't need to make up for it? That somebody else could stop Ganondorf?" Link asked, trying to understand the concept.

"No, you don't need to make up for it, but don't you remember what princess Zelda said? And what the Deku tree said? This is your destiny. You need to do this, but not because of guilt."

"I need to do this…" He muttered to himself. "But how? I don't even know where the last stone is?"

He seemed completely stumped. But luckily, Malon had a guess that might turn out to be right.

"I've heard the stories about the goddesses," She began, "Din created the fire and power, Faore created the forests and courage, and Nayru created water and wisdom. Fire is red, just like the spiritual stone of fire. The forest is green, just like the spiritual stone of the forest. So the only stone that remains is the spiritual stone of water. The Zora are a race that lives underwater, or so I've been told. Maybe you should go to the Zora's Domain to look for the final stone."

The fairy boy nodded.

"But not till tomorrow, I bet you're tired of adventures. Just be a kid for a few hours, then you can go finish saving the world." She said with a grin.

Suddenly she reached her hand out and ripped his hat off of his head, then took off running.

He smiled and ran off after her.


	7. Forsaken

Hours passed

Games were played

But each one came to an end as each on must

By midafternoon, Link had decided to continue on his quest.

He followed Malon's advice and set out for Zora's Domain.

Link passed few obstacles on the way, but the most unnerving was another meeting with Kaepora Gaebora.

As he followed the river upstream, Link managed to bypass several large rocks, only to find himself face to face with the massive bird.

It was perched on a column, and was staring down at Link. Before it began to speak, Link began to dread the conversation.

With tilt of the head, the owl said, "Half a day is lost. Be gone time, you have no meaning to the young."

Link realized what the owl had been trying to say.

"Are you saying that having a friend isn't worth it if it takes even one moment away from my quest?"

The owl twisted its head upside down and said, "A moment is nothing, hours have been stolen from your noble quest by that girl. If this time is not regained, your quest will have been for nothing."

"What do you mean stolen? It would have taken me a lot longer if it wasn't Malon. She figured it out for me."

"The answer was always there for you, the girl only distracted you from finding it yourself."

Without another word, the owl leapt from its perch and flew away.

When the bird was far away and definitely unable to hear Link's words, he said, "I can't believe he thinks Malon is distracting me."

Navi fluttered by his ear and said _He's right you know_

Before the fairy could say anything else, Link waved his hand in a halfhearted attempt to swat her out of the air.

She floated out of his reach and laughed at him.

The trip up the river wasn't as long as Link had thought it would be.

Compared to the hike up Death Mountain, it was simple.

It took less than an hour to reach the waterfall that fed the river.

Immediately stumped by the impassable wall of water, Link didn't even think of the royal song until Navi reminded him about it.

_I swear, you would never remember a thing without me._

Link sighed as the fairy chastised him, she was probably right.

The liquid barrier split down the center and allowed Link to jump across and into Zora's Domain.

A large pool filled most of the chamber, leaving a walkway that snaked around the wall.

Link climbed the winding stairs until he reached a smaller chamber with only one occupant.

A large Zora was sitting upon a pedestal. Bulges of thick skin and fat spilled away from the Zora's body, creating a spherical body. Large eyes were shut and covered with thin eyelids. Link could see the eyes through the lids. Sweat was streaming down the Zora, or maybe it was water.

Link walked onto a second, lower, pedestal and prepared to talk to the large Zora.

Before Link could say a word, the Zora began to speak, addressing Link in a deep yet shaky voice.

"Find her! You are not looking for her. As your king I command you to search. Go to the lake, maybe she is to be found there. Find her!"

The king ceased his speech and made it clear that he would say no more until "she" was found.

Link followed another tunnel out of the King's chamber. He met a second Zora who was more human shaped. The Zora began to speak to Link as he approached.

"You must excuse the King, his daughter has been missing for days. He will speak of nothing else until she is found. Most of our efforts have been direct toward searching near Lake Hylia. We need any help we can get. If you would help out in the search, I will give you this scale which will help you hold your breath longer through a form of ancient magic."

Link quickly agreed to help in the search, and was soon underway to Lake Hylia through an underground tunnel.

He could feel the magic of the scale coursing through him. It was an odd sensation.

Like dozens of pinpricks on his skin, and ice flowing through his veins.

But he could hold his breath at least twice as long.

As soon as Link finished this, he was going to challenge Malon to see who could hold their breath longest.

But first he needed to look for the princess.

Her name was princess Ruto and she had been missing for days.

Many Zora were searching in the deepest areas of the lake, and were leaving the shallows near the shore for Link.

The work was slow, yet complex.

He needed to dive to the bottom then comb the sands below for any clues for the princess's whereabouts.

An hour into his search, Link found something.

It was a glass bottle, and there was something inside.

Link realized that the Zora must have missed it since it was in the shallows.

He quickly returned to the surface with his prize, and inspected the contents on the shore.

He pulled the stopper and a small slip of paper slid out.

Unrolling the paper, Link read the few lines that were written on it.

It was a call for help, and it was from the princess.

Link decided that he should head directly back to Zora's domain with the message.

It could help them find the princess, and help Link get the final stone.

The sun was setting behind him.

Link was hurriedly climbing the path to Zora's Domain.

If there was anything that would ruin the day, it would be Stalchildren.

And if Stalchildren appeared, the river's strong current would completely undo his progress toward Zora's Domain. So Link was running. He could see the colors dancing on the water.

Dodging the projectile of an octorok, Link ran across the bridge. Just a few dozen more meters and he would be safely inside Zora's Domain.

Quickly he climbed the cross-hatched paths that stood before the waterfall. Finally he stood just outside the entrance.

Link jumped the gap and was safely inside Zora's Domain when the sun set.

But he wasn't done yet. He still needed to deliver the message to the King. Link kept running up the stairs until he reached the small chamber.

He showed the message to the King, who was shocked to discover that something called "Lord Jabu Jabu" had swallowed his daughter whole. Immediately after learning the news, the King ordered Link to enter "Lord Jabu Jabu" and rescue his daughter.

Whatever this thing was, Link had no desire to enter it. But he needed to, in order to obtain the last stone. At least, so he hoped.

Lord Jabu Jabu was a fish.

The inside of a fish is disgusting.

Opressive odors filled Link's nostrils.

The floor squelched beneath his boots, and there were dangerous electric jellyfish everywhere.

Link just wanted to find the princess and to get out of this place before he threw up.

For a moment, Link thought his luck was getting better. Just a few rooms into the monstrous fish, Link saw what looked like a child-sized Zora. But as he approached, and the Zora looked up at him, denied his assistance, and ran straight into a nearby sinkhole.

This wasn't going to quick or simple, and Link should have known.

Link pulled himself out of the icy water. Ruto had given him the spiritual stone and said some confusing things. But she had given it to him, so he was done. All he needed to do was deliver the stones to princess Zelda and it would be over.

But first, Link wanted to visit the ranch.

The innards of the giant fish had been deeply disturbing to Link. He still could see the narrow walls, the low ceiling. Then he remembered the realization that they were not walls, that was not a ceiling, it was a throat. Mucus dripped from above, pooling at Link's feet.

He needed something to take his mind off of that. Until he stopped thinking about those oozing pathways, he could do nothing else.

Luckily, the trip to Lon Lon Ranch was much shorter the other way, since most of it was downhill. He ran across the field, hoping to reach the field as quickly as possible.

Less than half an hour later, Link had reached the gates of the ranch. Malon was standing where she had been the previous few times. In the center of the field, with Epona at her side.

As Link neared, the horse whinnied and ran up to him, pressing her nose against his still-damp chest.

"Fairy boy!" Malon exclaimed.

Looking up from the horse, Link smiled, seeing his friend come toward him.

"Malon! I got the last stone." He said, reaching into his backpack.

Malon stepped closer to examine the trio of sapphires.

"Wow! Those are so pretty."

"Yeah, I guess so, but I've got to give them to the princess. But then at least I'll be done with all of this." Link said.

"Yeah, and then you can go back to the way things were. Can't you?"

But Link shook his head.

"The Kokiri still won't let me back in. They won't care about all the things I've done out here, they still think I killed the Deku tree and I can't change their minds."

"But, if you can't go back there, then what will you do?"

"I don't know."

For the first time in a while, Link was feeling like a kid, but not in a good way. He felt helpless, too weak to change anything in his future and unable to fix the problems he faced.

"Maybe you could stay here." Malon said suddenly. "I could talk to my dad and maybe he would let you."

"Are you sure? I mean, that would be great, but only if your dad's fine with it."

"Oh I'm sure he'd be okay with it. He really likes you, plus he likes me having someone to play with. I don't know many people outside the ranch."

Link was feeling good inside. For once he knew what he would be doing the next day. And he would be doing it because he wanted to, not because it was his destiny or anything like that.

Then Link remembered the thing he had in his backpack. He had found it in the stomach of Jabu Jabu. It had been floating among bits of refuse and various skeletal remains. It had caught Link's eye since it was the only thing worth looking at in the whole place.

Link reached into his backpack with one hand and said, "Oh yeah, before I forget. I found something while I was looking for the last stone, and I thought you might like it."

He handed the smooth white sphere to her.

"Oh wow," She exclaimed. "What is it?"

Link had wondered that very thing earlier, but he had asked one of the Zoras.

"It's called a pearl, I guess they're really rare or something. I found it inside a huge fish."

Link started to recount the story of his venture into Jabu Jabu, but Malon stopped him just as he started and said. "But, Link, I don't have anything that I could give you back. I feel like I owe you for such a nice present."

"No, you don't owe me anything."

But Malon insisted, "You went through that trouble to get it for me, I need to give you something."

"No, it wasn't any trouble. I just saw it there and picked it up." Link said.

"Ok, then if it was only a little bit of trouble, I'll just go get you something little. Wait here."

Suddenly she ran off toward the house, leaving Link standing in the field feeling confused.

Navi was hovering above his head, giggling for some reason.

Nearly ten minutes later, she returned holding something behind her back.

As she neared, she yelled to Link, "Close your eyes; I want it to be a surprise!"

Link did as he was told, and almost jumped when something dropped onto his head.

It was light, yet Link could feel it catching and grabbing onto his sword. He could also feel a confused fairy pressed up against his hat, yelling "_Get it off of me!_" over and over again.

"Now you can open your eyes again fairy boy!" Malon said excitedly.

Link's eyes shot open, but they were still muffled. He could only see a few inches in front of him and then the light became suppressed.

He could hear Malon giggling a few feet ahead of him. "You've gotta take it off your head silly. Here, I'll help you"

Link felt something slip off of him, and suddenly he could see again. Malon was standing in front of him holding a faded blanket that had once been tan.

Link felt confused, was she giving him a blanket? That seemed odd.

"This is the blanket that I gave you that other night." She said. "You know, when you were cold. I was just thinking, that, well maybe you get cold when you're off adventuring. And even if you don't go on anymore after this, I still don't want you to get cold."

She smiled, and that made Link smile.

"Thanks Malon, it's great!" He said enthusiastically. He took the blanket from her, looked at it for a moment, then put it in his backpack carefully.

Then Link frowned, remembering. "But, before we do anything else, I've got to take the spiritual stones to princess Zelda. That owl told me there might not be much time left. I want to get this done before anything else happens."

Malon's smile dipped a little bit lower. "Okay, but if we don't get to play anything before you go. Just tell me one thing."

"What's that?"

She looked at Link, her eyes full of curiosity. "What's your name?"

Link wanted to laugh out loud. He had never realized that he didn't introduce himself. This whole time she'd been calling him fairy boy he'd thought it was because she liked that name better.

"Oh, I never told you my name?"

Malon shook her head.

"Well maybe it's a secret."

Malon looked distraught, but she was still smiling, "You've gotta tell me! Please!"

"Well," Link pretended to think hard, "Umm, I'm not sure if I remember."

"What do you mean you don't remember!" Malon exclaimed.

"I, I don't know. You keep calling me fairy boy, I don't even remember my actual name." Link said with a grin.

"No, you're lying!" Malon said, "I can see it, you're smiling!"

"Oh, you caught me, my name is…" Link muttered his name purposefully so she wouldn't hear it.

"What? Did you say your name is Ink?" She asked confusedly.

"No, I said my name is…"

"Ling? Is that your name?"

"No, my name is Link. L.I.N.K, I think there's something wrong with your ears. "Link said with a smile.

When she realized that he had been purposefully confusing her, she pushed him on the shoulder and sent him tumbling backward.

"Hey!" Link exclaimed through laughter. "It's not my fault you can't hear."

Malon bent over to try and pull him up, but Link pulled her down and she landed on the grass next to him.

They were both laughing so hard that they were fighting for breath. Link hadn't felt this happy for a long time. But when he opened his eyes between the fits of laughter, he saw a sight he dreaded.

There was an owl in the sky, circling the ranch.

"Malon, I've got to go." He said, suddenly dead serious.

"What? Why?"

"The owl, it's up there. I think it's trying to get my attention."

Malon looked up toward the sky and saw the massive bird circling them.

"What is it trying to tell you?"

"I don't know," Link said softly, "But I think I should deliver the spiritual stones right now."

Malon nodded.

"Just hurry. Maybe it hasn't happened yet, whatever it is."

"I hope so." Link said as he picked up his backpack and ran off toward the gate.

Link was running

Even from the edge of Lon Lon Ranch, Link could see the mass of black clouds gathering over the castle.

The clouds seemed to be slowly spreading outward, seemed to be following something.  
As Link neared the gates, the clouds were above him. They were lower than clouds, though. It seemed that Link could reach up and touch them.

The chains were clinking.

Link knew the sound well, the gate was lowering.

But it seemed to be night. It seemed to be, but it wasn't. Link knew that it was barely noon.

Link was standing at the edge of the drawbridge. Something was coming, a white horse.

It was coming fast, Link stepped out of the way.

Time seemed to slow, but not enough to stop.

Link watched as the white horse sped past.

To his surprise, there were two riders on the back of the horse.

One was Impa, the princess's nurse. The other was the princess herself.

She seemed as surprised to see Link as he was to see her. She threw something to him, but it flew over his head and into the river. Then she was inside of his head, just like that owl had been, except that Link could actually see Zelda not just hear her.

She was explaining to him that Ganondorf was taking over the kingdom using powerful dark magic. Only the power of the triforce could stop him. She taught him how to open the door in the temple of time. The song to play on the ocarina. The one she had thrown to him, but missed.

Suddenly Link was back in his own body. He looked around, but was unable to see the princess, Impa, or the horse. But there was another horse, and atop it, a man. It was Ganondorf. He was looking around, no doubt trying to locate the princess.

Then he turned to Link.

"Where did they go? You must have seen them? Where did the white horse go?" He growled at Link. He could feel the man's dark power sapping the warmth from the air around him. Link was unable to speak, the man must have known that, yet he continued anyway.

"Where are they?" He said with a sneer.

Link pulled the sword from his back, raised his shield, and readied himself. He mustn't fail the princess, he mustn't give in to this evil man. He buried the toe of his rear boot into the ground, readying himself for anything that might come his way.

"You think you can protect them?" Ganondorf said, before a dark laugh slid from his throat. It seemed to push at Link's mind, pushing its way past his defenses. Link was afraid. He knew that he couldn't fight this man, knew that if it came to a fight, that he would lose.

That he would die.

The man raised a single hand and pointed it lazily in Link's direction.

Suddenly a burning pain shot through Link's body. It singed him inside and out. He could smell smoke as his simple wooden shield turned to dust in his backpack. The heavy metal shield in his hand grew blistering hot and unbearable. It fell from Link's grasp, dropping to the soft dirt below.

His eyes stung, from smoke, or heat, or the shock itself. Maybe all of them. Link could feel his fingers spasm. He felt the small sword drop from his grasp, following the shield to the ground.

Link dropped the ground, shaking uncontrollably as the energy passed through him. His burning eyes rolled into his head. His fingers stopped shaking.

From somewhere far away, far beyond Link's boundary of perception. Somebody said something. That something sounded like static to Link's ears. Maybe they were words. Yes, and the person was Ganondorf. Ganondorf was saying words. Those words, when placed next to each other would have formed the sentence.

"Too bad you're just a weak child. That could've been more fun."

Then Ganondorf was gone.

What could have been seconds, could have been hours, and could have been nothing at all. Whatever it was, it passed. Link's charred skin soaked up the icy rain.

When Link awoke, the darkness had long passed. The clouds were gone from the sky, leaving only clear daylight. He need to do something. It had something to do with the river.

Link began to crawl toward the river. There was something there, something that was his, or maybe not. After what was both years and seconds, Link fell into the deep water.

The instant temperature change cleared Link's thoughts drastically.

_The ocarina!_ He thought

He dove down to the bottom of the river, feeling the strange magic of the scale running through him. The ocarina, he found it at the bottom among underwater weeds and gravel.

Floating back to the surface, Link found his way to the edge of the river. Then he found his sword and his shield. The metal of both had been charred and seemed to have streams of smoke swirling around their surfaces.

Link limped across the bridge. On the other side, there was a corpse. It had once been the guard by the bridge, but it was no longer. The armor, the skin, and most of the features had been stripped away from the man's body, leaving only a blank and bloodied countenance.

Link moved past the body. He had been too late. There was no way to bring the man back. There was no way to undo what he had done. No way to fix it. Only a mission to complete.

Link was going to find the triforce.

And he was going to kill Ganondorf with it.

Limping across the main plaza of the town, Link saw scattered bodies. Some had been ravaged like the guard by the gate, while others had been senselessly mutilated.

There was a man leaning against the fountain with no appendages save a mangled arm. He was looking down at his disfigured body. Taking every inch of detail into his large bloodshot eyes. He was also screaming.

He wasn't alone.

A woman had been pressed halfway through a wall, so that only he face and one of her arms was visible. Blood was dripping from the woman's scalp, matting her hair and then dripping to the floor below. Her arm was several feet away from her body, sticking out of a mass of debris. Her lips were curved into a hysterical smile.

Near her, a young boy was pinned down beneath an overturned cart. His head and a single arm were visible. He was fighting viciously to free himself from the cart, but he couldn't look away from the woman's body. He was crying, screaming along with the man by the fountain. Maybe she had been his mother.

Crows were perched on top of the cart, watching the boy, waiting for his death. One stood on the floor near the boy's face. It was walking around the boy, stepping closer until the boy waved his arm at the bird. Soon he would be unable to lift his arm.

Link thought about trying to save the boy, but he knew that the cart would be too heavy for him to lift.

Besides, there were so many others. A man was impaled on the fountain, his blood pouring down along with the water. He was still alive.

But so many others weren't.

Link couldn't help but ask himself, who were the lucky ones?

He left the carnage behind him, heading toward the temple. He could do nothing to save them, nothing to help them. They were all dead, though some of them were fooling themselves into believing otherwise.

All dead

All doomed

All his fault

Link pushed his way through the heavy doors of the temple. Walked through the expansive room, listening to his footsteps echo. He could still hear the man screaming, the boy crying, the crows cawing. He could hear them all dying.

Link reached into his backpack, past the blanket the Malon had given him. Given to him while these people were dying. Why hadn't he given the stones to the princess first?

He pulled the stones out of his pocket and fit them into their sockets. A mysterious humming filled the air as he fitted the final stone into place. He pulled out the ocarina. The notes of the song sounded hollow in his ears. Stone grated against stone. The sound burned in Link's ears, but he didn't feel it.

He stepped into the room that had opened.

Light fell from a single window, illuminating a sword that was imbedded in a pedestal.

Behind him, Link heard the sound of a horse.

Then a man laughed.

"It was a good thing I left you alive…"

Link knew who it was. He ran forward, toward the white blade. His own sword would not withstand another onslaught, he needed this new one.

He closed his hands around the braided blue hilt and pulled it out of the pedestal.

The laugh was gone.

The evil man was gone.

The screaming man with a single mangled limb was gone.

The crying child beneath the cart was gone.

The humming from the three spiritual stone was gone.

The light coming through the single window was gone.

Link was gone.


	8. By His Own Hand

Here we are, finally at the turning point. Sorry but the temple of time intermission is going to be in two parts. Part one is Link's point of view, the second is for you to find out (:D). Please review cuz at this point I don't know if anyone even enjoys the story anymore. I wrote this one without paragraphs because I think it portrays Link's thoughts in a more confused stop-and-go fashion. Anyway, thanks for putting up with me long enough to read this.

* * *

In those first days…

Cold

That burning cold

So cold that he could not see

Could not breath

Could not be

That burning cold was him

Within him

Corrupting the shell around it

Link could not see

Could not move

Could not be

He was nothing

Was he nothing because of something

Something he had done

Yes

He was being punished

He had failed

He had destroyed Hyrule

Not with his hands

Not with what he had done

But with what he hadn't done

What he had failed to do

That man by the bridge

Stripped of flesh and skin alike

Link had done that to him

That man with a single limb

Screaming while he leaned against the fountain

Link had done that to him

The woman pushed through the wall

Blood dripping from the crown of her head

Her arm several yards away from the rest of her

Link had done that

The man impaled on the fountain

Blood dripping down the once pristine structure

Link had done that

The boy, trapped beneath the cart

Screaming for help

Helpless

Faced with death

Helpless

Link had done that

It was him

Link had failed in his trials

He had been too weak to do his job

Fulfill his destiny

He had spent time with Malon instead of finishing his job

He was so cold

Not even the blanket Malon had given him could keep him warm

* * *

In that second year…

Link couldn't move the sword

He wanted to

Those sounds

They were everywhere

Something must be making those sounds

His sword, the one of the kokiri

It was broken

Twisted, blackened, useless

He needed the white sword

But it was too large

To heavy

And he couldn't even move it

Those sounds

Those screams

Were they real?

Or in his head

Was any of this real?

Was that girl real?

Her name was lost

Gone to him

Forgotten

Though not through his will

It had slipped his mind and never returned

But the screams, they must be real

They haunted him

Burned in his ears

Taunted him

They resounded of the rounded white walls

He was no longer in that temple

The temple of time

There was no time

He was in his last stronghold

That which he had always retreated to

Those rounded walls protected his mind

But they had been penetrated long ago

Long ago

He had been invaded

Destroyed

By himself

* * *

In that third year…

Link couldn't move

He was tired

Tired of the pain

The fear

And the guilt

He burned inside with the need to do something

To fix it

To make it right

But how do you un-kill someone

How do you un-destroy the world

He couldn't even make up for killing the Deku tree

In cold blood

Murder by any other name is the same

That dark act

He had failed before

He failed again

He had always failed

Always would

Somebody had tried to reconcile him

Saria had forgiven him

If she forgave him

Maybe he hadn't failed

Not as badly as he believed he had

If he hadn't failed then

Maybe he could be forgiven now

Maybe

But not

He would not be forgiven for this failure

This was too late

The world was gone

Only he existed

But maybe, that was what it had always been

Did the world exist?

Was anything ever real?

Maybe it was all inside his head

If that was true

Then he had only failed himself

Failed

He had still failed

And is the death not death if that person who dies does not breath to begin with?

* * *

In that fourth year…

That boy was sitting

His mouth was moving

No word came out

But screams did

He screamed

Screamed at himself

Blamed himself

They all did

Everyone did

Even if they didn't, they should

Saria blamed him

More so than the rest

She hated him

She forced him to leave his home

That which he had always known

Ripped away

He had ripped it away from himself

When he failed

He had destroyed everything

Especially true this time

Hyrule was gone

It must be gone

Those sounds were gone

The screams

All gone

Surely everyone was dead

If they were all dead

Then why was he alive

Maybe he wasn't

Was he dead?

Was this death?

Trapped among your own thoughts for all eternity

Judgment

It was toughest

When it was his

It burned

It was hate

It was him

He hated

Hated himself

What had he been doing?

Why?

What had he done instead of delivering the stones?

He must have been afraid

Must have run away

Tried to escape

Cowardice

He hated it

He was cowardice

Full of it

Hated himself

Hate

It was gone now

All of the world

That boy died in his mind, burnt to death

* * *

In that fifth year…

He crawled through the pain

He was pain

That was all that was left for him

All that he deserved

Saria hated him

The Kokiri hated him

Hyrule was gone

Anything that existed

Anything at all

All of it hated him

He hated himself

Hated himself for killing the Deku tree

Hated himself for his fear

Hated himself for running

Trying to escape the madness that he was meant to stop

Meant to prevent

It was all his fault

His weakness had destroyed the world

He had eradicated all that he had been meant to save

By his own hand, those dozens had died

Hundreds, countless innocents

That child beneath the wagon

That man by the fountain

The one with a single limb

They were both long dead

Food for the crows

That boy

The one with the hate

He was dead

He was in hell

He was hell

Hell for himself

That empty space between his eyes and the back of his skull

That was his hell

That dark place

Meant only for him

Known only to him

It was hell

His hell

And he deserved it

His failure had destroyed the world

* * *

In that sixth year…

Deafening

Those screams

They were back

Moans

Pain

He had caused it

It was his fault

All his

Echoes

Bouncing in his mind

The bearers of the screams

That boy's victims

They were long gone

Long dead

But their ghosts still burnt in his conscience

Haunting him like only ghosts could do

Old ghosts

Long ago, they were real

Real people

With real lives

Real families

But then the boy came

He destroyed everything

His weakness

His fear

It ruined the world

It killed everyone

They were all dead

And it was his fault

He had done it to them

Ripped apart all that was good

Burnt people alive

Crushed them

Killed them

He had done that to them

That boy, the one huddled inside his own mind

His own conscience

Black as ink

Burning like acid and as strong as cement

As cutting as that blade

The white sword

It burnt near him

That boy could see it

Just beyond his view

Could he touch it?

Would it engulf him?

Something said that it was legendary

The bane of evil

If there was evil in the world

The boy was evil

* * *

In that seventh year…

Madness

He touched the blade

It cut through him

Leaving a burning hole where he had once been

But then it was a part of him

He was a part of that burning purity

That perfect unity

That blade was a part of his eternal evil

His pure blackness

But his conscience was alive

Stronger than his will

It burned in his mind

It fed off of him

Eating all that he knew

Devouring

That devourer lived within him

Lived within the blade

Lived within those rounded walls that housed him

It took control

But it was stained

He took the blade in his hand

Lifted it from the ground

Held it before him

That burning purity coursed through him

Fiercely ripping at his existence

Tearing him apart

Putting those pieces together

In the wrong order

But what was wrong

And what was right

Once, long ago, running away was right

And staying was wrong

Right was wrong

Wrong was right

He held the blade of evil's bane before him, feeling it slowly tearing apart his mind and soul

It killed evil

He slowly died as he held the blade

But he had a job to do


	9. That Boy

That fire burnt

Unendurable as it was

It was the source of Link's life

Burning within him, beating his heart when he had become too weak.

Coursing through his heart when his blood became too thin.

Thinking for him when he was dead.

For he was dead, had been dead for a long time.

But there was hope, for Hyrule if not for him.

There had to be time, time to fix what he had done.

He waited, for soon he would stop what he had unleashed upon the world.

No matter the cost.

Link would fix it, he would fix it all.

Kaepora Gaebora

The bird

An owl of great size

Of great age and great intelligence

A bird, but not

Regardless, he watched as the young boy stumbled through the market

All too aware of the carnage he had wrought upon the world

Or can you be too aware of your own actions

Can there be too much guilt for one's actions?

That boy had doomed the world

But the next time, he would not

There was no choice

He had allowed the boy to choose this time

The next, his choice might ruin the world's chances at survival

He would have no choice

The owl closed its eyes

That door, the one that he felt

The one within his mind

It had been opened then close by another

The owl followed that other through the door

That owl

The bird but not

With the great age and the great wisdom

He stepped through the door, following the boy

He opened his eyes to see a scene entirely different from the one he had closed them on

An infinitely expansive space

It went on for all eternity

Directly in the center, stood a boy

In his hand's he held that blade

That blade of piercing light and deep purity

He would need it

The owl

The bird but not

Now he wasn't

He had reverted

Become that form which he had known before

Before the guise of Kaepora Gaebora

He wore orange robes and a white beard fell from his chin

His head was bare

His name was Rauru

He extended his mind toward that of the boy, feeling for the tense presence that he had watched over for such a long time

It felt different

Guilt can change a person

Rauru prepared for his work

That long, hard, necessary work

The guilt hadn't changed the boy as much as he had hoped it would

Memories

The pulsed around the mind

Through the mind

Inside the mind

Around the mind within the mind

Rauru was floating through the young boy's thoughts

Deep in his observation of them

He was searching for something

Something in particular

In reality

He was searching for two somethings

Two memories

Both were positive to the boy

However, they were destructive to the cause and ultimately to the world

Friendship

And forgiveness

Rauru searched, and found

He stood in a forest clearing

The boy was standing only feet from him

That girl was standing ahead of him, playing her instrument, oblivious

Oblivious to the fact that what she was about to do could end the world

No one, especially this child, could afford to be that oblivious

Neither of them could see Rauru, since he was simply observing the memory of this encounter

This dangerous encounter

Quickly, Rauru pressed his mind around the memory, ripping it from the boy's mind

The gaping hole stood before him

Constructing a replacement that would satisfy the need, Rauru filled the hole

In the new memory, the proper one, the girl was disgusted by the boy

She blamed him wholeheartedly for killing the Deku tree

He struggled to explain what had happened as she yelled uncharacteristically at him

She understood few of his words, caring for even less of them

Though she grasped the concept that he needed her song

He needed her song to fix what he had done

She quickly taught it to him, ushering him out of the clearing as he still struggled to grasp the last few notes

That memory was corrected

The girl blamed him

His guilt would remain

He would fix what he had done

This memory was brighter in the boy's mind

It stuck out and was easier for Rauru to find

It was of the other girl

The one with the red hair, the unimportant one

He had been temporarily stunned by the crowds of the Hyrule market

She stalled him then tasked him with something that he had no time for

She would ultimately lead to the downfall of Hyrule

She must be removed

After the memory was taken away, Rauru began to engineer a counterfeit

A replacement

In this replacement, the boy had recovered from the shock quickly and continued on his way to the castle

Rauro also removed the memories involving the child's father and that cucoo

Following the boy's memories, Rauro took out every memory with the girl or the ranch in it

Following the search for the princess, the boy headed straight for the mountains

From there, Rauru carried him under the guise of Kaepora Gaebora

He took the boy to the drawbridge of Castle Town

The boy saw the water and immediately followed the river upstream as he should have

After the final stone was found, the boy began to feel uneasy

Afraid for the first time, he tried to return to Castle Town, but found himself trying to flee

He ran for the forest

He spent days within the forest before he was confronted by Kaepora Gaebora

The owl informed him that dark events were occurring and unless the stones were at Hyrule by dusk, the entire venture may have been in vain

As he returned to Castle Town, he moved slowly due to apprehension and dread of the dark clouds

From there, events continued as the actually had

With this memory, the boy would be focused, able to complete the quest before him

He would do right this time

Seven years

Time that passed and was lost to the wind

Fires burned

Scorching then dying as they all must

Buildings were completed, and buildings were destroyed

Hyrule Castle Town had fallen

Now inhabited by dark beings, it was dangerous and treacherous to any outsider

No one dared venture within the walls anymore

To the east, Kakariko village had fallen under dark times

Crowded with refugees from Castle town and other destroyed settlements, the village underwent shortages of food and water

The well had long since run dry, ceasing to produce water

Hunters who had once been met with ample game were forced to venture deeper and deeper into the forest

Many became lost while attempting to bring food home to their families

Those families often starved while awaiting food

The fate of each hunter was unknown to everyone

All but one girl who lived deep in the woods

Those woods where she had lived became dark

The temple that was once bright became sinister and gloomy

Monsters roamed where there had once been none

Many of the forest children were confined to their homes

Several had disappeared into the woods, never to be seen again

At the head of the river, where the Zora had once lived, there was a hollow cave

Frozen, imprisoned and helpless, they fell prey to the spreading darkness in the world

The source of the river, Lake Hylia, was infested by monsters

The water level had fallen and was baking in the hot sun

The fish that had once lived there were gone, dead or elsewhere

Death Mountain was raging

Fire spewed from the crest of the long dormant volcano

A single Goron lived in the massive city

The rest had been taken, imprisoned

The ranch that stood in the center of Hyrule field had changed as well

Gone was the lazy comforting attitude that had once flowed on the air

Gone was the owner, the father, the employer

Gone was the man Talon

In his stead there was a dark man who was corrupted by power, the power jealousy and the power of another man

The power that didn't belong to him

From those years

Spawned from the darkness within

There stepped forth a man

Where blue had once been prevalent, his eyes burned black

Hatred burned in them

But it would wait for another time

When the world had been ridded of his mistakes

Then he would loose the hatred he had for himself

Those eyes became blue, the shadow was purged from himself

Hidden from the light he wielded

Hidden from the world he had wronged

Hidden from himself

He held the blade of evil's bane in one hand

He was going to finish what had been started all those years ago

Link opened his eyes

Finished pulling the sword out of the pedestal

Gone was that ignorant fearful youth

He was dead

Link was freed from the imprisonment

And he was free to destroy the evil he had unleashed

Link was freed from the imprisonment

From that trap

Un-trapped

Un-imprisoned

Unleashed


	10. Receive this Fate

And the light was fading from that room

The room with the round walls

That window that was so far away

So far overhead

That window was closed, the slit of light was fading

Fading

Dying

Link was fading

Fading within his own mind

Burning

Melting

Turning to ashes and becoming nothing

Not broken, shattered or displaced

Nothing, disappeared

Link was gone

Dust in the light that was leaving him

Slowly settling to the ground as that which had illuminated him was fading

Then the door opened

* * *

Link stepped into the world

Through the door that had been opened for him

Opened by Rauru the sage

He looked at what the world had become

What he had done to it

He saw what had once been lush

A small city that had been a plush paradise for many citizens of Hyrule

Now it was a mass grave

Link had done this

He looked across the barren square

Skeletons were scattered across the courtyard

So many were dead and gone

Forgotten by the world

Their final screams carried away and forgotten by the chilling wind

So many had been erased

Still a few remained

Cold husks of the vibrant people they had once been

Leathery skin was stretched over their frail forms

Frail so they seemed

Link walked slowly toward the closest form

His footsteps were even

Measured

His face was blank, devoid of emotion

Devoid of the fear that had filled him as a child

The fear that had cost these people their lives

Their very humanity

That white blade was clasped firmly in one hand

A shriek filled his ears

Burning, seething with hatred for him

Hatred that was well deserved

But Link wasn't going to be stopped

Not by these fickle demonic creatures

Not by anything

Not fear

Not pain

Nothing

Link took another step toward the creature

That scream clawed at his ears

Torturing him

Another step

He would not be stopped

The creature leapt forward and dug its claws into his shoulder

Teeth that had decayed for years on end ripped at his flesh

Not by pain

He whipped his sword skyward as he struck at his assailant

Skin was torn from the creature's gaunt face

A yellowed skull stared back at him from a few inches away

As he pulled his sword up again, an earsplitting cry sounded from behind him

Not by fear

He finished his strike, severing the head of the monster, before turning on the new assailant

Even as the creature moved toward him, Link whipped his sword across the monster's chest

Cutting it in half

Not by anything

* * *

Those redeads fell as they must

In the darkened soulless eyes of each monster, Link saw the person that they had once been

The hopes and dreams that had been ravaged when Link gave into his fear

Then he watched has his blade ripped that person apart

Ending them

A curse and a blessing

Link was cursed

Cursed by his own cowardice

By the failures of his childhood

By he own weakness

He had destroyed the world

That man, the one who went by Sheik, had said to investigate Kakariko village

Link headed to the village

None of the villagers there recognized him

Link didn't want them to, but it wouldn't have mattered

Be it by the hand of villagers or the hand of Ganondorf

Link would be punished for his weakness

But not before he had fixed it

Deep underground, Link found the spirit of Dampe

The grave keeper's ghostly form was horribly mangled and damaged

Something had happened to him since Link had met him that night

But that was inconsequential to Link

After he tracked the ghost down in the underground labyrinth, Dampe presented Link with his hookshot

That was important

The hookshot seemed to be a valuable tool

* * *

This forest

It had once been a home to him

Now the passageways were dark, narrow, and twisting

They seemed uninviting

Unhappy to meet him again

He who had killed the Deku tree through his weakness and fear

Why should the forest greet him kindly?

But kindness was inconsequential

His purpose was to undo what he had caused many years before

Then nothing

Link didn't know what he would do after it was over

And he didn't care

He needed to keep his mind in the present

* * *

After sneaking past half a dozen Moblins, Link found himself in that sacred grove

The one where Saria had often played her ocarina

She was nowhere to be seen

But Link could remember the last time he had seen her

Could remember it clear as day

He could remember her shouting uncharacteristically

She had never shouted or even raised her voice until that day

But now she was gone without a trace

* * *

The dim light filtered down from the canopy overhead

Dust could be seen floating in the pillars of light

Two wolfos stood opposite Link, claws spread in a menacing pose

He had pulled his sword out even as the creatures came into view and now he was waiting for one of them to make a move

The rightmost monster took a step toward Link, brandishing its large claws

Taking his chance, Link stabbed at the monster before quickly twisting his attack into a slash

The blade caught the wolfos in the neck and left a large gaping wound

Even as Link pulled his sword form the monster's neck, the second wolfos leapt toward him

Since his blade was still lodged halfway in the first creature, Link pulled his shield in front of his body and pushed the attacker away.

His blade came free as the wolfos hurtled backward through the air, slamming in the trunk of a tree.

The first monster weakly swung its claw at Link only for the feeble attack to be batted away.

He leapt through the air coming to land just in front of the second wolfos. His blade was buried in the monster's chest. Thin black blood pulsed out around the white blade.

Link pulled his sword from the chest of the monster and moved on, leaving the first wolfos to slowly bleed to death.

It was of no danger to him.

Killing it would only eat away at time that was already limited.

The beast was inconsequential.

* * *

Link was alone again, nursing his wounds.

Both physical and emotional, they were equally draining.

During the battle with Ganondorf's phantom, Link had succumbed to various injuries including major burns and a deep gash along his ribs.

Blood stained his green tunic, its sickly sweet stench being lazily wafted to his nostrils by the wind.

But the real pain had come after the battle

Once Ganondorf's phantom had been destroyed, Link was transported to a faraway place.

He felt no sensation except that of dread as he realized where he was and who he faced.

"You're back." Saria said, her eyes cold and her voice hard.

"I was too weak then. But now I will fix it."

"Your weakness killed the Deku tree." She said flatly, "And destroyed Hyrule. How can you fix that?"

"I-I can't fix it, but I can put an end to it."

"Then do it…" Saria said coldly.

Then Link was transported away from that place.

That cold look in Saria's eyes stayed with him though.

* * *

Saria watched as her old friend was taken away from the chamber of sages.

She had missed him through all those years.

And she knew that something was wrong.

Something had happened to him and it had damaged him.

And now she was part of it.

Why had she agreed to help that man?

When she entered the temple, an old man had transported her to the chamber of sages and told her to wait for Link.

Then he told her what she needed to do if Hyrule was to be saved.

What she would need to say.

That man had told her that Link was selfish, lazy, and ignorant.

That those traits could very well bring on the end of the world.

So Saria had agreed to do what needed to be done.

Agreed to deceive her best friend for the sake of the world.

But the moment he had appeared in the chamber with her, she had seen something in his eyes that spoke of unbeknownst guilt, horror, and fear.

Why had she gone through with it?

That man had said that Link was unmotivated.

He had said that if she was friendly toward him, Link might forgo his quest.

But she knew Link, and he would never do that.

But it was too late now, she had no way to contact him, no way to confess to him and tell him what that old man was doing to him.

Saria sighed and waited.

And hoped that her friend would be alright.

* * *

A sapling stood to the side of the road.

It was thin and feeble, and it easily yielded to Link's sword.

The upper half of the now dead tree fell to the ground with a rustle.

She still hated him, maybe even more now.

Link looked farther up the road.

There was a thick tree that stretched high into the air.

Its branches were strong and its leaves were green.

Link held his sword in both hands and ran screaming toward the tree.

As he neared it, he saw the Deku tree instead of what was actually a simple oak.

On one of the branches, instead of a crow, Link saw Saria.

She was glaring at him, and so was the Deku tree,

Link threw himself at the trunk of the tree, thrusting his blade into the thick bark.

It only went a few inches into the tree, so Link withdrew the sword and swung it horizontally.

A thick scratch marred the already gnarled tree, but nothing more than a scratch.

Taking a step back, Link jumped straight at the tree and buried his blade into the trunk.

It sunk deep into the wood and stuck when Link tried to remove it.

"Oh you shouldn't have done that young man…"

Suddenly aware of a second presence, Link jumped away from the tree and looked around.

"Because now you're alone…"

Something dropped to the floor near Link. He looked over at it and saw a figure wrapped in a dark cloak. A gnarled walking stick was grasped in one bony hand.

Light began to flood the area as Navi flew into the air, but then it went dark. A high pitched squeak erupted from above him and then Link could hear Navi frantically fluttering around the area.

_Link there's something chasing me!_

"No white sword… No fairy… You're all alone aren't you…"

Suddenly the cloaked figure was rushing at him, the walking stick was being flung aside.

Link started to step toward his sword, but the figure hurtled into him before he reached it.

"Now that! You're alone! You're all! Mine! All Mine!" The hideous voice screamed.

Each shriek was punctuated by a razor sharp claw.

Luckily for Link, he had landed with his shield over his face, so the creature's attacks were doing no damage to him.

He shoved the figure off of him and scrambled for the next weapon in his backpack.

He pulled out the bow he had found inside the temple.

Quickly taking aim, Link fired tree arrows at the cloaked figure.

Each shot seemed to do no more than tear at the rags surrounding the creature.

_LINK! LINK! LINK!_

Link looked skyward and saw that a black bird was chasing the fairy around the sky, quickly closing the gap between it and its prey.

Link raised his bow and took aim, loosing an arrow without hesitation.

The shaft struck the bird in its chest and knocked it clear out of the sky.

Before the bird struck the ground, the figure had barreled into Link, knocking him to the ground.

Sharp claws tore at his arms as he tried to fend the thing off.

"Mine! Mine! MINE!" The thing shrieked greedily.

Link screamed as he felt a large gash open up on his forearm.

He could feel the thing in his mind, feel its dark presence pressing in upon him.

Link struggled to pull himself back to his weapon as the thing attacked him.

Suddenly light flooded the area and the thing hissed in surprise and revulsion.

Link was able to push the thing off of him and run to his sword. Then Navi squeaked and the light went out.

Just as Link's fingers closed around the sword, the thing took hold of him again. It yanked and battered his arms, sinking its claws into his muscles and biting at his shoulders.

Blood began to soak his tunic in multiple areas where the thing had bitten or clawed him.

Suddenly the blade came free and Link fell backward onto the thing. The white sword must have touched it because it shrieked and scrabbled out from underneath him.

Before the thing could attack again, Link shouted, "Navi! Where are you!"

A weak light fluttered out of the darkness and began to float over Link's head.

While still watching the thing and keeping his sword between them, Link exclaimed, "Navi! Are you okay?"

The light chirped lightly but said nothing more.

"You are strong now…" The thing said softly.

"But soon you will tire, and the night is my friend…"

That was when Link realized that the sun was low on the horizon. Soon it would be night. And Link had no doubt as to who commanded more advantage at night.

"You'll waver, and then you'll be mine…"

Suddenly someone called from far away.

"Hello? Is there someone out there? Are you hurt?"

Then the thing spoke in a low whisper, "And maybe I'll have myself a snack while I'm waiting…"

Link saw the thing begin to move toward the voice.

_Stop it Link!_ The exhausted fairy bellowed.

Before the thing moved far, Link threw the master sword, knowing that he was too weak to swing it.

The blade flew toward the thing and hissed as it made contact with whatever was hidden within the cloak.

The thing shrieked and growled in agony.

The sword had pinned the thing to the ground, burning it slowly as it struggled for freedom.

Link hobbled over to the writing thing, taking hold of the sword.

Suddenly there was a snap and the thing was free.

It lunged at Link before he could react and ran a razor sharp claw across his face and lightly across his throat.

"Fortune smile on you today…" The thing hissed as it retreated across the hills .

"But I am always watching you…" Then it was gone.

The words echoed in Link's mind, as he began to feel the extent of his injuries.

As the approaching voice grew both nearer and more distant, Link collapsed into unconsciousness.

He dreamt of unending darkness and betrayal.

* * *

So, who is this dark thing? Kudos to anyone who figures it out. Hint:The crow was key. But that probably made it to obvious to anyone who knows what I'm talking about. Message me your guess and I'll let you know if you're right.


	11. The Ranch Part One:Beyond the Red

That thing was crawling

Crawling toward him

Link backed away from it, first one step, and then another

But that rickety creature was moving faster and more purposefully than he

Fingernails clicked on the cool hard ground

Or were they fingernails?

Link looked again and saw that there were tiny shining knives perched on the fingers of the thing

That thing

What was it?

Something horrible, terrible, frightening

Something unreal

And all too real

Link tried to step away from that thing that was coming for him, that demonic clicking was still coming toward him

Something burned

Not a burning heat, a burning light

All around him

Permeating the darkness that he was trapped in

All alone in

But not alone enough

That thing was here

No, it was still there, still far away

But all too soon it would be here

Link tried to step away from the thing but succeeded only in tripping over something

Tripping over what?

There was nothing, nothing in this place except Link and that crawling thing

It clicked on the ground, warning Link of its advancement

Link remembered something, a weapon

He remembered a sword

A sword that was the bane of all evil

Made of pure light

Link reached for the blade

He reached for the weapon that had not failed him before

Now it did

He reached for the hilt that should have stuck up over his shoulder, staying just on the edge of his vision

His hand grasped only air

Cold air

And then it wasn't

The air began to burn, not just with that dark and evil light, but with heat

Terrible, unbearable heat

It was everywhere

All consuming

It was within him, around him, where did it come from?

_Click_

Link felt something grasp his ankle

He was on his back

Defenseless

And that crawling thing was still with him

Alone with him

No white sword

Nothing

Link braced his hands on the sweltering floor beneath him and scrabbled away from the icy cold hand around his ankle

But the grasp wouldn't lessen

Those knives

Link felt pain, terrible, awful pain

Those knives

Something was cutting, tearing, ripping at the meat of his leg

Those knives

Slowly crawling toward him, first his ankle, then his calf and shin

Those knives

The ones that were on the fingers of the crawling thing

They were digging into him

Link stopped struggling away from the thing and reached down toward it

Hoping to free himself

His fingers were met with slick blood

And nothing else

No knives

No pain

No legs

Nothing

Then it all returned

They were back

That thing was back

It was back for him

Of course it was back for him

It had said it would be back for him

Hadn't it?

It was coming for him

It was here for him

He could do nothing to stop it

Do nothing to save himself

All he could do was stand by while the thing killed him

Then it got worse

The thing was on top of him

Ripping tearing cutting digging

Digging into him

Suddenly there was something in front of him

Just in front of his face

So close to his face that it was hard to see anything else

He could feel the blood

He could see the thing in front of him

He could see that red

That awful blood red

* * *

Link's eyes jerked open.

Staring straight ahead, or rather above, he saw something

Something, something he could not describe

Like fire but not, burning with a deep red light that never flickered or faded

Not even for a moment

That amber fire cascaded down over his face, framing the world as he could see it

Beyond

He saw beyond that amber waterfall, that deep red wall that blocked out the rest of the world

Beyond

There was something else

Something, or someone

Something was buzzing, a burning that flowed through the air and not directly into the skin

But delving first through the ears

That buzzing could have been formed into sounds

Sounds into syllables

Syllables into words that could have been assembled into phrases

Could have been if Link wanted them to

If only he wanted enough, he could understand

He did

"Are, are you awake this time?"

The words seemed alien to Link, as if coming from somewhere far off

He struggled to keep his eyes open

He wanted to see what was beyond that amber waterfall.

"Are you going to fall asleep again?"

Was he?

Maybe he would…

No, sleep had come once before

And that thing had come with it

No, Link would stay awake

He would see the something beyond the red

He pulled his eyes open, blinking once as the crisp air struck his sensitive eyes

Things began to swim into focus

A nose a few inches away from him

Beyond the red there was a nose

It was sharp and small

Small, set right in the center of something

Between two eyes, above a mouth

The center of a face

The face of a person

The mouth was moving

"So are you gunna stay awake this time?"

Link tried to say something but found himself unable to. Instead, he raised his head slowly, pulling a single arm up to his face and moaned. The moan was unintentional, and he ceased it as soon as he realized it existed.

"Where am I?" He tried to say, but instead it came out as "Worm eye"

The person somehow understood his garbled speech, though, and said, "You're at Lon Lon Ranch. You've been asleep for days."

Link was shocked, "Days…" He trailed off, staring briefly into empty space. There was no way that thing had hurt him so bad, how had he been unconscious so long? But, if he had been asleep for days, that meant he had been putting off his quest.

Again

But he couldn't let that happen, not this time.

Link tried to get out of the bed, rolling over and pushing his feet out underneath himself. But just as they touched the floor, Link felt something pop loose and he fell to the soft dirt below.

He tried to push himself up, but ended up spasming in pain instead.

"What are you doing?" the now slightly feminine voice said, "You're still hurt, you need to rest."

Even as she was admonishing him, though, he growled through a clenched jaw. "Where is my sword, I need to go. I need to finish it."

Before he had scrabbled around on the floor for more than a few moments, she grabbed him by his shoulders and pulled him back onto the small cot.

"You're still hurt." She said as she pushed him back down on the bed, "You need to rest still."

"But I need to-"He tried to insist, but was cut off.

"No, you need to get better. And I'm not gunna let you out of this bed until I think you've gotten better."

Link said nothing, but ceased struggling. He knew that in this condition he wouldn't be able to force his way past her, he couldn't even walk. But soon he would be able to, and then he would leave. He had a job to do.

"Well as long at that's over, I bet you're hungry." She said, and even as he tried to deny it, his stomach betrayed his mouth.

"I'll go see if I can find you something, I'm Malon by the way." She said as she turned toward the door.

Still breathing heavily from the slight encounter, Link muttered, "I'm Link."

He could have imagined it, but when he said his name, Malon stopped suddenly.

He also could have imagined her whispering his name just barely loud enough for him to hear.

Then she left the barn, disappearing from his view.

* * *

Malon was leaning against the wall of the barn.

The outside wall of the barn

Because he was inside

Link

She hadn't seen him in years

Seven years

He'd just disappeared one day and never come back

Maybe that was why she hadn't believed it was really him

Still didn't fully believe it

But as soon as she left the barn, Malon had checked something

Maybe it wouldn't mean anything, but maybe it would

She had taken his weapons and his backpack and put them in the house, making sure to hide them where Ingo couldn't find them

If he saw Link's equipment, he would be sure to try to sell them.

But Malon hadn't run inside to check his equipment, but his backpack. She knew that she shouldn't and that it probably wouldn't be there still, but something carried her into the house and all the way up the stairs. She opened the backpack, reaching deep inside it. Knowing that it wouldn't be there, probably long lost or thrown away. Maybe immediately after he had disappeared.

But to Malon's surprise, she encountered a soft fabric within the backpack. Startled, she pulled it out and looked at it. It was itchy but still somehow warm and soft. It reminded her of her mom and of that warm day in the field when Link had suddenly fallen o of the sky. And of that night in the barn loft, when Link had been cold even though he assured her he wouldn't be.

But now he was back.

But Malon was still scared to confront him. He had still inexplicably disappeared one day and been gone for seven years. He had been there just long enough to be her best friend, and then he had left.

But she had stalled long enough.

Malon carried the plate of food into the barn. There was nothing special on it. A sandwich with meat and some cheese on it and a small earthenware cup with milk in it. He was still where he had been a few minutes ago, laying in the small cot staring up at the ceiling.

Now Malon could see clearly the dull light shimmering from beneath his hat. That must be Navi.

Malon walked over to him and notice that he was fast asleep. His eyelids were shut tight but he shifting restlessly. Malon leaned down and said his name, hoping to wake him up. Maybe when she could get some answers from him while he was sleeping. When he didn't respond, Malon tried to shake his shoulder gently, but her efforts were only rewarded by a shrill whisper.

_Stop that, he's trying to sleep._

Malon watched as the shimmering light squeezed itself out from underneath his hat and floated waveringly in front of her face.

_Malon, you need to let him, us, sleep. I'm awake now so I can try to explain anything you want, but then you should just leave us alone for a little bit._

The fairy seemed irritated, but hesitant to snap at Malon for some reason.

"Well, if you can explain some things that would be good. First, where did he go? He just disappeared, you too."

_Before I start, I need to tell you I'm in the dark on a lot of things. So is he._

"Okay Navi, just tell me what you can then."

_When we left that day to deliver the spiritual stones. Ganondorf had already began his attack. The princess was fleeing and the town was torn apart._

"I remember that, just after you left the sky went dark over the castle."

_Link went to the temple on his own to try and stop it, but just as he opened to sacred realm, Ganondorf walked into the temple. He'd been following Link. Earlier Link had tried to fight him, but his sword was ruined when Ganondorf attacked him. So Link tried to take a sword from the temple. It was from just inside the sacred realm, but when he grabbed it everything, stopped._

"Stopped? What do you mean?"

_Like one moment Link was ten years old grabbing the sword, and then he was seventeen and he was holding the sword in his hand. And Ganondorf was gone too. Then we left the temple and everything was like this. But Link seems different, I don't know. Maybe something happened to him when he picked up the sword. But the weirder thing is that he can't remember anything._

"What do you mean he can't remember anything. Like nothing at all?"

_I don't know, he's barely said a word to me since we left the temple. I don't think he remembers you though, he doesn't seem like he recognizes you._

"But how's that possible? You remember don't you?"

_Only parts of it. Like your name and I remember that the two of you were friends._

"Well do you think he might remember?"

_He might, but he's not going to remember right now. And I'm tired._

With those words, Navi slipped back underneath Link's hat.

And Malon just stood and watched her old friend for a few moments before returning to her work.

* * *

Sorry for that gap, but from now on it should be back to normal. I was having trouble figuring out how Malon was gunna keep Link at the ranch without any hard feelings, finally just decided to be blunt but I hope that works. And thankyou everyone for the reviews, feeling much better about it now.

VDorsey:Sorry not Gomess, a character from OoT. And it is a character not an enemy.

I promise I will have part 2 up tomorrow.

And one more hint as to the cloaked creature(character) is, check my profile and there is a clue if you look for it.

Anyway, thank you all for reading, don't forget to review


	12. The Ranch Part Two:Those Null Days

Many hours passed while the boy and his fairy slept.

Many hours passed while the girl was painfully aware of their passing.

Every moment that passed seemed like one less that Link would stay at the ranch.

Whenever she had a chance between chores, or whenever she needed to enter the barn, Malon would take a moment to gaze at her old friend. Once long ago he had been her friend, her only friend, and as far as she could tell, she had been his only friend as well. But then he had disappeared and she had been left friendless.

Alone

Now he was back, though, and maybe they could be her friend again, maybe he wouldn't leave this time.

But Navi had said there was something different about him. Maybe it was all part of the amnesia, but maybe there was something more.

Malon continued with her chores, knowing that she could do nothing to help Link except to let him sleep. And she did want to help him.

* * *

Many hours later, midway through the day, Link awoke.

He opened his eyes slowly and looked around the barn. The rafters, the walls, the pens, they all seemed so strange. Like figments of a dream that had come alive.

He sat up in that cot, wincing as the movement stretched his bandaged wounds.

Just then, Malon came into the barn an seemed excited that he had awoken.

"Are you feeling better now?" She asked.

"I'm, I'm better. Much better."

"That's great, I thought that you would be unconscious for a few more days at least."

A look of confusion crossed his face, then one of panic.

"Days… How long have I been here? How long have I been unconscious?"

"Just one day, but I thought it'd be longer before you woke up." She lied.

He became noticeably calmer when she told him that. But Malon could still hear the panic in his voice.

"That's still too long, I need to go." He said, trying unsuccessfully to conceal the previous panic.

"I'm sorry Link," Malon said, "but you're still hurt. I can't let you leave here until you're better."

He stood slowly, gingerly wincing as the pain came back to him. His injuries were no longer fresh nor bleeding, but they had been deep. Link grimaced as he bore his full weight, saying through gritted teeth. "I'm fine. I, I just need to go. I need to get out of here."

Suddenly the strain was too much for him and he collapsed, nearly striking the floor before Malon caught him. As she hauled him back onto the bed, Malon said, "See I told you, there's no way you can do anything like this. I'm not going to let you leave until you can at least stand. How do I know you're not just going to collapse as soon as I turn around? I'll go get you something to eat, you just focus on getting better."

Malon left him in the bed, returning to the house for some food. She was happy that he had awoken, but she was still worried about him.

* * *

Days passed while Link focused on recovering his health.

Malon devoted most of her time that wasn't already occupied by chores to helping him recover.

By the end of the week he was able to walk around the ranch and Malon let him ride Epona while Ingo wasn't watching.

That didn't mean Ingo didn't notice Link's presence.

Once, while Malon was preparing some food for her friend, Ingo caught her inside the house and said, "Did you think you would be able to hide that kid in the barn forever?"

She spun around and saw him standing in the doorway. "He, he's hurt. He just needs to stay here until he's better." She said quickly.

Ingo didn't seem to hear her. "And you're feeding him our food. That's how I found out. Do you think we have enough money to feed a third person? That's why your dad had to leave. We just can't handle three people with the sales being the way they are."

As soon as he mentioned her dad, she scowled at Ingo. But she didn't say anything. Her father had disappeared one day, several months ago. He had left a note, explaining that the sales had been unfavorable recently and that he didn't want to burden the already feeble income with an extra mouth. The note also said that he was putting Ingo in charge of the ranch because of all the hard work he had put out over the years. Malon had taken one look at the note and immediately discredited it. Something seemed wrong about it, not to mention that the sales had been fine and hadn't taken a noticeable dip recently. But Malon was restricted to the farm for as long as it took the "sales" to go up again.

"But he's hurt, it'll only be a few days before he's better. Then he can go."

"He needs to go now. Who knows how the sales are going to go this week. Maybe he's going to eat the food we need next week."

"The sales are fine," Malon said, "He only needs to stay for a couple of days. He'll be fine by the end of the week."

"But we won't be, he's a leech. He's just taking our food and then he's going to leave and we're left here with nothing. Is that what you want? You're helping him and he's just going to leave us here to die." Ingo was angry now, not yelling, but speaking with a deep growl.

Suddenly Malon said, "But what if he didn't leave?"

Ingo seemed startled by her outburst, seeming both curious and confused. Malon felt the same as she tried to concoct some way she could keep Link on the ranch.

"What if, what if he stays here after he gets better? He could work here. Dad didn't do much work, "She said, feeling sad as she tarnished her father's name, but continuing anyway. "But he can. He'd be able to make up for the food he's eating in no time." She finished, somehow sure that Ingo would agree.

He did

The man left the room and headed back to the field.

As she finished Link's food, she wondered if he would agree.

* * *

Well there you go. Sorry that there wasn't much in that one but it's more of bridge between parts one and three. Also trying to show that Link is desperate to get off the ranch so he can finish his quest. I should have part three up soon so hold on tight. If you get bored you should check out my oneshots and my other story. Some of you might like them.

Anyway, thanks for reading.


	13. The Ranch Part Three:Those Seconds Lost

That sound permeated the air, like a buzz and a ripple and a knife stabbing directly into Link's ears. A scream, definitely a scream. He jumped out of the cot, fully alert. He had asleep just moment ago, but now he stood in the cool air of the barn.

As he looked around for the source of the noise, he realized that it was coming from within the barn. He slowly walked toward the sound, still feeling the pain lancing out from his wounds. He staggered around the barn, looking for the source of the noise. Since he had awoken, the sound had faded until it was a slow creaking sob.

Finally Link followed the noise to one of the pens. It was being used for storage, and was full of dusty crates and barrels. Close to the back of the pen, Link could hear muffled breathing.

"H-hello?" Link asked quietly, his voice slowly fading into the calm air of the mostly empty barn.

The sobbing quickly subsided into a stifled silence.

Link started to ask again, to ask if there was anybody there, when suddenly one of the crates shifted. It had moved barely more than an inch, and Link probably would have ignored it if he hadn't watched it move. Through the slit, Link saw an eye, not one of impure flesh but one that must have been crafted from a sapphire. A sapphire that was set in a burning ruby.

A ruby set alight by a thousand stinging tears.

Almost before Link could catch it, the crate began to slowly slide back into place. Luckily he did catch it, and Link was able to fit his hand into the gap before it was closed. Unluckily, he stuck his hand into the gap just as it was closing.

Wincing through the pain, Link whispered quickly, "Malon, is that you?"

The pressure on the crate increased, and Link began to lose feeling in his hand. More anxiously, Link said, "Malon, come out here." The pressure eased and Link saw an eye appear in the slit. "Malon, what's wrong?" Link asked.

Silence rang in the room, echoing off of the wooden walls.

Then suddenly all pressure on the crate ceased and Link was able to pull his hand out. The crate began to slide away from the gap, widening it. Malon stepped out from the concealed space, and Link could see fresh tears on her cheeks.

"He's, he's selling her." She said with complete and utter misery apparent in her eyes.

"He's selling who? Who's selling who?" Link asked, confused.

"Ingo, he's selling Epona. At the end of next week."

"He is…" Link said, still feeling confused. Wasn't that what happened? Horses were bought, horses were sold. Weren't they?

"Yes," Malon said with a sudden forcefulness. "You've got to stop him."

"But, umm…"

"What?" Malon said incredulously, "You mean you would just let him?"

Link didn't say anything. He didn't want to intrude on these matters. He didn't own the ranch, didn't work there. He didn't even live there. This was the first time he'd set foot on the ranch.

"But Link, she's my best friend," Malon said, then suddenly her resolve changed and she said, "If you don't do something I'll have to."

Then she stepped past him and left the barn.

* * *

Now Link was outside of the barn.

He felt uncomfortable, somehow alienated. Like he didn't belong.

Of course, he didn't belong, but that didn't make the feeling any less disconcerting.

Link was standing directly in front of a man named Ingo.

"I know I'm selling the horse," The man was saying, "I'm the one selling the horse."

"But, can't you sell one of the other horses?"

"No, and I'm not selling the horse," He said, "I'm giving it as a gift."

No Link was curious. "Who are you giving it to?"

"Lord Ganondorf"

That name sent a peal of dread through Link.

But Link pressed on. "Actually I've heard that he doesn't leave the castle much, so he wouldn't even need a horse."

Link watched Ingo's face, hoping for one reaction, expecting another. His expectations proved correct.

The man laughed, "And I suppose a kid like you knows what he would want instead." It was meant to sound like a joke, but Link heard only a question.

"Yes"

Ingo stopped laughing, instead looking at Link half incredulously, half expectantly, "Oh really? And what would that be?"

Link was silent for a moment. He had practiced this with Malon beforehand. He knew what he was supposed to say.

"Hmm, what does the warrior king want more than anything?" Link paused, hesitantly, then he pulled his sword from the sheathe on his back and held it before him. The blade glistened in the morning air, shining with the light that could drive away a thousand years' worth of darkness. Or seven years.

"The blade of the royal family." Link said as Ingo stared at the weapon. So far this was all going according to plan.

"Y-y-you," Ingo stuttered as he grasped for the right words, "You have that! You have what he, what he wants?"

Link nodded, pulling the sword away from Ingo just as he reached for it.

Sheathing the blade, Link said, "No, it's mine. But maybe we can find some type of agreement."

The man smiled, a deep toothy smile that seemed sinister.

Link had expected that smile.

"Yes, maybe we can…" He said softly.

* * *

Link was mounted atop a horse.

It was a chestnut red color, and its name was Epona.

Just a few feet away from Link, Ingo was mounted on another horse.

Once again, just as he had many times before, Link wondered why he was doing this. He was wagering his sword, the sword that he needed to destroy Ganondorf. He was wasting time, time that would put him closer to killing Ganondorf. And he was wasting his energy, energy that he needed for the journey ahead of him.

"So we're clear on the rules, right?" Ingo asked anxiously, "Two laps, if I win, I get the sword."

"And I get the horse, and if I win, I get both." Link said.

"Yes, yes, yes," The man said hurriedly, "One!"

Link strained to remember the bits of horsemanship Malon had taught him.

All of it slipped through the cracks in his mind, disappearing without a trace into that chasm

That endless, bottomless chasm

"Two!"

But there must be something, anything that could let him win

Something that would let him keep the sword

Let him destroy Ganondorf and be done with this

When Ingo yelled three, Link lost his concentration and his muscles went rigid. He held tightly onto the horse with every muscle and joint in his body. He froze.

The Horse didn't.

Epona shot forward and around the bend. The horse's lightning quick speed left Link lightheaded and half blind. The fence was whooshing by at such high speed that Link could see nothing except a faint indistinct blur.

Link saw something shoot past and he decided that it was probably the gate.

One more lap.

He held onto the horse tighter, fearing that he might fall off.

In spite of his efforts, Link began to feel tired, no doubt his previous exhaustion mixing with his new lightheadedness. One second Link was watching the world become liquid around him, the next he was experiencing firsthand exactly how solid the world really was.

He was rolling across the uneven ground, something similar to déjà vu raging in the back of his mind. Then suddenly he felt something crash into him, or maybe he crashed into it. There was crashing, and Link felt something crack.

After almost a minute of watching the world spin, Link discovered that the crack he felt had actually been his body snapping a fence post.

When Link finally stood up, he saw Ingo standing a few feet away from him shaking his head slowly and chuckling. "I should have known you wouldn't be able to control that wild horse. Doesn't matter now, the horse is yours, the sword is mine." The man held his hand out while Link still looked around dazed.

Then another voice was speaking, it was probably Malon. "But Ingo, he made it across the finish line."

Both Ingo and Link looked at the line that had been drawn in the dirt. Link was standing about a foot and a half past it.

Link looked away from the line in the dirt, straight into the quivering eyes of the man just a few feet away from him. "That means I won."

Ingo turned red and nearly began to shout, "You weren't even on the horse when you finished. That means you lost. You saw it Malon. He lost."

But Malon said, "He won."

The nervous man quickly looked back and forth between Malon and Link. Finally his gaze settle on Link and he said, "A rematch, if you win again you, you can," The man faltered as he searched for the right words, finally saying, "If you win I'll give you the deed, to the ranch. But I've got to get that sword."

There was something wild in the man's eyes, and Link almost declined, but he could see Malon nodding vigorously behind Ingo. And Link still owed her for caring for him this whole time.

He sighed and agreed.

Just moments later he was back on Epona. He was side by side with Ingo again.

"One"

Link still couldn't remember anything that Malon had taught him.

Last time he had won by a fluke. By chance.

But Link couldn't lose this time.

"Two"

Link took a deep breath, preparing himself. He felt a fly buzzing near his face.

He took a moment to swat at it irritably.

Reflexively he blinked as his hand neared his eye.

When he opened them again, he saw Ingo's horse racing along the track.

Startled, Link squeezed Epona with his legs and leaned forward, hoping to reproduce the effect of the last race. Epona shot forward. Within moments she was only a yard behind Ingo's horse. Then her head was even with the horse's rear legs. As Epona pushed forward in an attempt to pass the horse, a stray leg shot up and nearly struck her in the face.

After that, she warily crept around the horse, careful to stay out of the range of hooves. Link watched the gate pass them by, only one lap left.

Link pressed himself closer to Epona's back and she slowly gained ground. The horses were even now, neck on neck. The air stung at Link's ears as it whipped by. Just ahead Link could see the finish line.

Something struck Link's ribs, nearly shoving him off of Epona's back. Link turned around to see Ingo's foot arc up again and catch him in the shoulder.

At this point, Link's instincts took over. His arm reached out, catching Ingo's ankle in a tight grip, and with a vertical shove, Link levered Ingo off of the horse. The man fell against the gate, knocking his head against one of the posts.

Epona came to a stop just past the finish line. Ingo's horse proceeded to enter the pasture and resume doing whatever it had been doing before the races.

Link jumped off of Epona in time to see Malon running toward Ingo. He was able to catch up to her and they both reached the man at the same time.

"Is he okay?" Link asked her.

She knelt next to the man and looked at him for a moment.

"I think so, he's breathing, but we should probably get him back inside.

Link helped Malon carry the unconscious man back to the house. They put him into what was apparently his bed, and Malon told Link to stay with him and let her know if he woke up.

So Link sat in a chair next to the man's bed. At first it was boring. Ingo didn't move, he barely even breathed. After that it was boring too, the entire thing was boring.

After several hours of sitting and trying very hard not to fall asleep, Ingo finally awoke. He opened his eyes, sat up, and looked at Link. "What, what happened?" He asked slowly.

"You fell, wait here I'm going to get Malon."

So Link left Ingo in that room and went looking for Malon. He found her quickly since she was just outside the room.

When he saw Malon, Ingo immediately asked her what had happened. She asked him for the last thing he remembered.

"I, I remember waking up. And I remember it being dark, like a different type of dark. Almost like the shadows were puddles of ink. And I remember going outside and looking around, and hearing footsteps. I remember turning around, and then I woke up here."

Malon said nothing for a moment, then she turned to Link and whispered. "That must be the night my dad left. He doesn't remember anything since then."

Link just looked at her confusedly. He had never met her father, not that he could remember.

Malon turned back to Ingo just as he began to speak again. "I remember something else. Something, different. Like a dream that is too real to be a dream. I remember Talon leaving. I remember making Talon leave. I remember racing some kid on a horse." Ingo looked hazily up at Link and said, "And he looked like you. And he looked like some kid I saw once, a long time ago." Then he looked at Malon and asked, "Where's Talon? Isn't he here?"

Malon told him about what had happened, about how his dreams were true. Too real to be fake, but much too farfetched to be the truth. Ingo only listened and stared dumbfounded as he realized what he had done. "I, I need to find Talon." He said shakily.

"No Ingo, you need to stay here. You might be better in one way, but you're still hurt." Malon said.

He tried to protest but Malon insisted that he remain on the ranch.

"Even if you did find him, "She said, "There's no way I'd be able to manage all of the work while you're gone."

He sighed.

"You're right, I just wish I could do something to make up for all of this." Then he looked at Link suddenly and asked, "I don't know why, but you strike me as someone who gets around. Doesn't get anchored in one place for very long."

Link didn't say anything, wasn't sure what he could say. He just nodded because it was true. He probably wasn't going to settle down anywhere anytime soon. Or ever.

"Well if I write a letter to Talon, could you give it to him?" Ingo asked.

"I guess I could. But I don't know how I'd be able to recognize him."

"Oh that's easy, Malon you tell him what he looks like, I'll start writing." Ingo said, and he did.

He reached underneath the bed and pulled out a box, inside was a small stack of smudged paper and a pair of pencils.

Malon told Link what her father looked like, and he waited just a few moments longer before Ingo handed him the letter.

"You make sure you give this to him if you see him." Ingo said, "Don't forget. We might not get another chance."

After assuring Ingo that he wouldn't forget, Link was allowed to leave the room and collect his equipment from where Malon had hidden it.

Just as he was leaving the ranch, Malon walked up to him and said.

"Come back soon."

Link looked at her, feeling upset, "I, I can't. I have a job to do."

Link turned to leave, not wanting to waste any more time with words.

He felt her hand on his shoulder as she turned him back around.

"Come back when you can."

"I'll try"

Then he left, and she let him go.

* * *

There you go, part 3. Or as I'm thinking of it, step one of Malon and Link's relationship. Anyone who hasn't already, check out my other story The Collector. I need help decided whether or not to rewrite it. You can send me a message or leave a review(on The Collector) to let me know how you feel. It is a good story, but I'm not sure if it comes across the way I've been writing it. And for anyone who's interested, I just opened a FictionPress account so anyone who wants to check it out my user name is still SoungGeare. Please review, and thanks for reading.


	14. Broken Down Again

Before I get started, I want to apologize for changing the name on all of you. I've been doing lots of thinking about the next two stories [this is part one of a trilogy] and I decided that this name fits better with the other two names I've picked. If you ask I'll share them with you via pm. Sorry again for switching it but this is the last change. Not gunna flip it on you again.

* * *

Malon watched Link walk away from the ranch. The sun on the horizon just beyond him, causing Malon to squint her eyes. Even from this distance she could see that he was walking with a limp. She was unsure if it was from his previous injuries or from falling off Epona. Probably both.

As she stood there watching his silhouette grow steadily smaller and more distant, Malon heard a noise from behind her and she spun around. Ingo was there, there was still a slightly dazed look in his eyes. Still unsure of what was really real. He looked at her and said, "That's him isn't it, the kid from before."

Malon nodded. "Link…"

"That's right, but he seems different now. Did something happen to him?"

"Something happened to everyone, seven years ago. I think he was just in the middle of it all."

They were silent, both watching as the tiny smudge disappeared across the river.

* * *

Link walked up the long staircase. Navi had suggested investigating Death Mountain, so that was where he was going now. The burning cloud billowed ominously around the summit, casting an eerie glow on the town. As Link walked through the town he had known those many years ago, he saw so many changes. New buildings, he saw children who had grown up, and many people who had once inhabited Castle Town.

The place seemed crowded, too many people, too little room. Many faces were gaunt and pale. Part of him wanted to stop and help the people. Ask what was wrong, what had happened to change the town so much. But he knew what had happened.

He had happened.

Link passed through the town and began to ascend Death Mountain. Shadows were lengthening and the dark pools were growing deeper and wider. A monster emerged from one of them, its spiny legs twitching as it leapt toward Link. Whipping his sword out of the sheath, Link sliced the front two legs off of the creature. It fell to the dust covered floor and began to spasm. Link left it there, moving on with his journey up the mountain. There was no time to be wasted.

Finally the sun disappeared entirely, yet the mountain was still lit by a mysterious glow. As he climbed higher, Link realized that the light was coming from the mountain's flaming halo. After encountering several more of the spiderlike creatures, Link found the cave. As he stepped into dim torchlit setting, Link once again saw the effect of the last seven years. The place was deserted.

As Link progressed deeper along the rough paths, he saw that the place must have been emptied recently. Though most of the torches were still burning, many had died and the ones that burned provided just a faint glow. Dust and ash covered the ground, each step left a smeared print in the microscopic rubble. From far below, Link heard an echoing noise, is sounded gravelly and constant. Navi was floating several feet above his head, casting her meager light over the path.

As the source of the noise grew progressively less distant, Link drew his sword and held the dimly shining blade ahead of him. The light was reflecting off of the sword, casting a shimmering appearance over the walls of the cavern. The echoing noise still resounded from below, and Link felt a bead of sweat drip down his forearm. Earlier he would have pressed ahead fearlessly. Well, not fearlessly, just not caring. Not caring for his own wellbeing. Not caring for whether or not he died. But now he had another obligation and this one required him to make it out of this cave alive. He needed to deliver that letter, he needed to find Malon's father.

What he had done had torn her life apart and it was his job to fix it. And he couldn't do that dead. So he needed to be careful with whatever was residing deep in the belly of what had once been a vibrant city. Now the dust was gone. Each footfall resounded off of the cold stone floor. Tap-tap-tap. Then silence.

There was something just ahead of him. Something moving. It was moving toward him. It was moving fast.

Holding the white sword ahead of him in one hand, reaching for his shield with the other, Link prepared for the attack. The scraping sound grew louder and louder until it was deafening, and then the thing was upon him. It was so big. Like a wall, or a boulder. And it was headed straight for him.

He needed to find Talon.

Link abandoned his plan of straight up attack and dove out of the creature's path. To Link's surprise, it continued on its way and paid him no more attention.

Seeing that the thing was gone, Link decided to continue the way he was going. Maybe he would find something at the bottom of the hollow city. Everything seemed quieter as he descended deeper into the mountain. For some reason, there were more torches lit as he progressed. But once Link reached the ground floor, only a singled light was there. It was coming from a doorway toward the rear of the cavern. Light was spilling out of the room, and Link saw that it was the chamber of the Goron King.

Darunia

If anyone had remained here, after whatever had happened, it would have been Darunia. Link ventured into the room and found it empty and desolate just as the rest of the city was. But even though there was nobody living there, Link saw many things that seemed out of the ordinary. Where Darunia's chamber had seemed entirely functional and bare seven years ago, it was now filled with an assortment of items, both large and small.

A rock with a cloudy red surface, a small bundle of twigs, several shards of glass, and something that looked like the top of a leather drum but had a crude image on it. Link stepped forward and picked up the picture. There was a large circle, with two dots near the top, and a smaller circle, with two dots near the top. There were a few upside down triangles and also a large square. As he attempted to decipher the painting, a scratchy voice said from behind him. "You're not one of them, are you?"

Link turned around slowly. There was a large shape filling the doorway. "One of who?" Link asked. The shape shifted about nervously, then it said, "One of Ganondorf's monsters…" Link shook his head and the shape stepped farther into the room. Now that it was visible by the light of the torches, Link saw that it was a small Goron.

"Where are the others?" Link asked, "The rest of the Gorons?" The Goron paused for a moment and it didn't seem like he would answer. But then the raspy voice said, "The monsters took them all to the temple. My dad is there too, he's trying to get them back." He stopped again, before saying, "Maybe that's why you're here, you want to talk to my dad."

Link wasn't sure who the Goron's dad was, but he did need to find a way to the temple. He just nodded and the Goron said, "That's what I thought, but he's already in the temple." The Goron sighed, "And I have no idea how long it will be until he gets back."

"I can go into the temple and find him." Link said.

The Goron stopped and looked at Link for a moment, "The temple is dangerous now, and my dad told me not to let anyone go in there after him."

"Maybe I could help him, I've helped the Gorons before."

"When did you help us? As far as I can remember we've never asked a human for help."

"Seven years ago, I cleared out the Dodongo Cavern and Darunia gave me the Goron ruby."

Something dawned on the Goron's face and he exclaimed, "That was you? You're Link! And you've met my dad, he's the king. He named me after you! Come with me I'll show you the way to the temple."

Link the Goron stepped around Link the human and motioned for him to follow. It wasn't a long journey since the Goron stopped at the other side of the room. There was a large pillar against one wall, and Link watched Link slide it to one side and reveal a tunnel.

"Just go this way and you'll find the temple. Good luck Link."

"Thank-you Link"

Then Link disappeared into the darkness.

* * *

The air was sweltering. Link could feel sweat rolling down every vertical part of his body. On the other side of the room stood a large Goron. It was Darunia.

"Link! My brother, you've returned."

Between the two of them was a vast pit of lava. Burning embers were constantly being shot up from the floor before lazily spiraling back down to join the mass below.

"I've come to help you!" Not the whole truth but it was enough. "What's happening here?" Link shouted to the distant Goron.

A thick bubble floated to the surface of the lava and exploded, flinging droplets of molten liquid rock. The air was so hot that it was almost visible as it snaked its way to the ceiling.

"Ganondorf as abducted the Gorons and resurrected our ancient plague, the dragon Volvagia. He plans to release it upon the Gorons and make us an example to the other peoples of Hyrule. I need to ask a favor from you brother. While I attempt to defeat Volvagia, I need you to release my people."

And with that the Goron turned and stepped through the door behind him. It shut with a loud clang which wafted a draft of burning air toward Link.

* * *

Hours had passed within the temple. The flame colored tunic was drenched in sweat. Link's movements were slow and his limbs felt thick and tired. But here he was, standing in the faraway place again.

And once again, he wasn't alone.

Opposite him stood Darunia. A pale white vapor floated around the Goron. His eyes were cold and hard, staring at Link.

"I defeated Volvagia." Link said.

"You were gone for so long." The Goron said, seemingly dismissing the victory.

"So much happened and you were nowhere to be found."

"I-" Link wasn't sure what to say, he didn't know how to feel. "I didn't have a choice-"

The Goron cut him off and began to shout. "Didn't have a choice!? Out of all of us you were the only one with a choice and you squandered it. You destroyed the kingdom you were meant to protect."

"If I could change it, I would." Link said softly, more to himself than to the hulking Goron.

But Darunia heard him. "If you could change it! You can't change it. And no matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, all those people still died. And you still could have stopped it if you'd been more focused."

Link didn't say anything. How could he. Everything that Darunia said was true. Every word of it. And Link knew it.

"Nothing you do can undo what happened, but you can still prevent further destruction. Now go and finish what you started."

And then the chamber, was gone. Darunia was gone, the pale mist was gone.

And most of all, Link was gone.

* * *

How could he do that?

And to his own brother. That man had told him that he needed to but still…

Link was the savior of his people twice over and Darunia's own sworn brother. And he had treated him like and oath breaker and a traitor.

But it was all for the good of the world. Because for some reason, Link was discouraged and lacked initiative. Darunia didn't see it but supposedly the man who was also not, supposedly he did. Maybe there was more to this than what appeared, but it was too late. Darunia was trapped here now and there was no way to contact his brother.

* * *

Just want to say thankyou to everyone who's reading my stories. I've been really fighting with writer's block for the first time since starting this story but I'm starting to feel like I'm getting back on track. But darn, I just jinxed it.

Anyway, sorry bout that Good Luck Link-Thankyou Link part but I just couldn't resist. Anyway please review, let me know how you like it, what you like, what you don't, what I should change, anything that's going through your head while you read. Thanks for reading.


	15. The Ranch Part Four: Back to the Start

Link was stumbling down the mountain path. His sword and shield tightly buckled to his back, his hands balled into fists at his sides.

His eyes that stared off into space. Not comprehending, not caring.

Something jumped toward him, its spiny legs flailing as it whooshed through the air.

Throwing his fist out, Link knocked the creature aside with a balled up leather covered fist. Something cracked, probably the creature, but it didn't matter.

Link just kept walking down the path.

He really had let everyone down and they really must hate him for it. He'd been beginning to doubt it after his experience with that Malon girl, but first Saria and now Darunia. Probably the two people in the who knew him best. They both hated him for what he had done.

Malon probably hadn't recognized him for who he was, or mistaken him for some other person who was worth her compassion.

Something gave way under Link's foot and he lost his balance. Not even trying to stop himself, Link slid and tumbled down the mountain path. As each stone and bit of gravel dug into his arms and face, Link knew he deserved it.

Finally Link came to a stop and he picked himself up out of the dirt. His arms were covered in red marks and blood. Most of the actual wounds had been coated with dust and thus the blood flow had already ceased. Nothing serious, just some kind of divine retribution from the goddesses. Well deserved, but it wasn't enough. It would never be enough.

* * *

Soon Link reached the bottom of the mountain. He passed through the gates and into the center of Kakariko village. He was about to leave when he saw something that jolted him. It was a man wearing blue overalls and a red shirt. His head was bare but the assumed mustache more than made up for the missing hair.

It was Talon.

He was talking to some lady. She seemed aggravated at him, while he stood there silently looking at the ground, not saying anything.

Link stuffed one hand into his backpack and searched for the letter while he staggered toward the pair. As he neared, the lady jabbed a single finger into Talon's chest and then walked away.

Talon just stood there and continued to stare at his feet. Link didn't know what the conversation had been about and he didn't care. All he needed to do was give Talon the letter and then he could be off to continue on his quest.

"Excuse me" Link said, his voice still dry from the smoke and heat of the temple. It came out as a croak and Talon didn't react. "Talon." Link said, this time louder. The man spun around and looked up at Link. His eyes looked heavy and his brow was furrowed.

"What do ya want?" He said slowly, "Make it quick cuz' whatever it is, I'm not in the mood for it."

Link handed him the wrinkled envelope that smelled slightly of smoke and watched as Talon opened and read the letter within. He muttered to himself as he digested the words. "I-this means I-I can go home." Suddenly he looked up at Link and said, "Thank-you so much for bringing this to me. I insist you come to my house for dinner."

Then Link started to stammer as he struggled to find a reason he couldn't. "I-uh-I'm sorry but I can't." was all he could come up with.

"W-why not? It won't take too long, only a couple of hours and then you can be on your way. What's so important that you can't put it off for just a couple of hours?"

He wanted to say, saving the world, fixing everything, saving lives. But none of those seemed to jump to his tongue as fast as they should have. All that he said instead was, "I just can't."

Too which Talon replied, "Well what if I put it this way? There are monsters in the field, especially at this time of day. If you don't accompany me, I might get hurt. Maybe even killed. Would you want that to happen?"

"No."

"Then wait here, I'll go get my things and then we can head over to the ranch. And while you're there, the least I can do to reward you is give you a good meal for all of your efforts."

Then Talon was gone. He turned around and ran off after the lady who was talking to him before. As Link watched, Talon struggled to catch an empty backpack and several other objects as a younger man tossed them out through the front door of one of the buildings. When the things stopped flying toward him, Talon dropped to his knees and started to fill the backpack. Most of the objects were small so it was only a short time before Talon returned to Link.

"Well that's all of it, let's go."

And thus they set off to return to Lon Lon Ranch.

* * *

While they were descending the steps in front of Kakariko village, Talon began to speak.

"Since you had that letter, I guess you must've met Ingo already."

Link nodded. "He seemed nice."

Talon laughed and said, "Don't bother trying to lie to me, I know he's hardly likeable, but he grows on you. So how bout Malon? Have you met her yet?"

Link nodded again.

"She's really something isn't she?" Talon said with a smile," The only thing that kept me holding on while I was in Kakariko. You ever feel somethin' like that?"

Link thought about defeating Ganondorf someday. Finally putting an end to all of the madness that he had caused. About all those years trapped inside his own head with just one thought in his mind. "Yeah, something like that."

Then Talon did something unexpected. Or rather said something unexpected.

"I feel like I've met you before, you seem familiar. What did you say your name was?"

"I didn't, it's Link."

"Link huh?" Talon said with a thoughtful look in his eyes.

* * *

As they walked the sun set and darkness flooded the landscape. Before long the nightfall was complete except for the light that Navi cast.

Link struggled to see ahead of him and to keep track of Talon.

But then there was another light.

It burned red and seemed to make the darkness darker. It was the light from Link's nightmare.

"Again?" It inquired in a raspy voice.

Link slowly reached for the sword above his shoulder, still fearful of the creature before him. But when his fingers reached the place where the handgrip should have been, he found only freezing night air.

"Looking for something?"

The voice seemed to resonate through the air and slow down the flow of time. Link looked back to the thing and saw the shining white sword was next to it. It had been driven into the ground until only the hilt and the hand-guard were visible.

"Clumsy, clumsy. Now you die."

As the last word faded in the air, three things happened.

Firstly, Link reached into his backpack and pulled out the hammer he had found in Death Mountain.

Secondly, the creature leapt through the air toward Link, its claw-like fingers spread menacingly.

Finally, Link's free hand whipped out and hit Talon in the chest driving him backward and away from the creature. Link wasn't going to be responsible for Malon losing her dad again.

As the creature fell through the air toward him, Link swung the hammer skyward and caught it under the chin, or where its chin would have been if Link could see beyond the red light. The creature flipped backward and landed on its feet, seemingly unharmed. Without a moments hesitating it charged toward Link, preparing to attack him again.

Link threw his foot out and struck the thing in its chest, or where its chest should have been. There was a hollow sounding crack that echoed through the air and the thing fell onto its back. But just as Link was about to bring the hammer down on the blood colored light, it rolled out of the way and jumped to its feet.

Link held the hammer out in front of him, keeping it between him and the thing standing before him.

But the thing just laughed.

A single arm raised up and touched the end of the hammer. The smell of smoke filled the air and Link saw the end of the hammer begin to bend and melt.

Link pulled the hammer away from the pale white finger and watched as the handle began to catch fire.

Panicking, Link threw the hammer at the figure and jumped back. The hammer hit the thing square in the chest and the cloak burst into flames.

Link watched as the flaming figure stumbled around, flailing its arms wildly. Taking his chance, Link ran past the flaming thing and wrapped both hands around the hilt of his sword. It slid out of the dirt quickly, and soon Link was holding a slightly tarnished white sword in both his hands.

He spun around to face the creature which had discarded the flaming cloak in a smoldering pile on the dirt. Now Link could see the creature's true form. It was skeletal. Bleached and yellowed bone. The top half of the skull was missing and a glowing red orb floated where the brain would have been.

Its appearance reminded Link of the Stalchildren he had fought so many years ago.

Link pointed the white sword directly at the skeletal creature, waiting for it to move. But the thing warily held its ground. Link jabbed the sword at it and the thing jumped away. After a few more attempts, Link decided that it was going to evade any attack Link threw at it. Their only chance was to reach the ranch and shut the gates behind them. Only then would they be safe.

"Talon!" Link shouted, "Where are you?"

The man was silent and Link started to worry, but suddenly he appeared beside Link.

Still pointing his sword at the creature, Link said, "We need to get to the ranch and shut the gates. I need to watch it so you're gunna need to lead me there."

Talon accepted and Link began to walk backward. The creature stepped forward quickly, closing the distance between them. They progressed like that, step by step. Talon guided Link to the ranch while Link held off the creature.

It was more than an hour of this before Link's shoulders bumped against the solid wooden wall of the ranch.

That was when the creature attacked Link again. He had let his guard down for a moment and the skeletal thing took advantage of that fact. It leapt toward Link and almost reached him. It would have injured him if Talon didn't react. He saw the shape out of the corner of his eyes and pulled Link out of the way. The skeletal figure slammed into wall.

Link stumbled backwards, but quickly regained his balance. "Thanks, how do we get in from here?"

"There's a gate but it's so dark I can't see it. And it can't be opened from the outside."

"So we're stuck out here all night?"

"Unless Malon or Ingo wakes up."

Link sighed. This really was starting to remind him of the night he fought the Stalchildren.

Link was about to say something, but just then he heard a loud creaking noise coming from behind him.

"It's the gate!" Talon said.

Talon turned and started to run toward the sound. Link was about to follow him, but then the skeleton attacked him again. Fending it off with the white sword, Link started to walk backward. With one hand he felt the outer wall of the ranch and with the other he held the sword out in front of him. Somehow the beast seemed to know that he was on the verge of escaping and its attacks were especially ferocious.

It leapt at Link, seemingly oblivious of the sword. He was barely able to deflect its claws before they tore across his chest. Although they ripped four streaks across his tunic, Link wasn't harmed.

Along the way, Link stumbled over a rock and fell to the ground. The sword fell from his hand and clattered across the ground. Suddenly helpless, Link held one hand over his face as he watched the thing close in on him. He could footfalls crunching as it approached him. He reached one arm out toward where he thought his sword was. He could feel the hilt with the tips of his fingers. But it was too far away and all he could do was struggle to get hold of it while the thing came for him. But then it was too late. Link felt one of the bony claws lock around his ankle and start to drag him away.

Then the darkness was driven away and Link could see the thing ahead of him. He heard the crackling of flames and just for a moment Link looked away from the thing. There was a person holding a torch. "Get away!" Link shouted. He wasn't going to let anyone get hurt because they were trying to help him.

But there was no response. At least not a verbal one. The person started to wave the torch at the skeleton, attempting to drive it away. The skeleton didn't move, it just stared at the fire and held its ground. "You can't hurt it!" Link shouted, "Only the sword hurts it."

The torch faltered for a moment and a voice asked, "Where's the sword?"

It wasn't Talon. The voice sounded different. Less worn and deep. And it wasn't Ingo.

"Malon it that you?"

"Yeah, where's the sword?"

Despite the torch's presence the thing was still dragging Link away. "Its behind me, over there somewhere." Link tried to gesture but he was cut short when the claws cut through his pants and started digging into the flesh below.

Then the thing started to back away from him.

Link looked up and saw that Malon was brandishing the white sword and waving it back and forth in the direction of the skeletal creature. While she had it distracted Link worked his way to his feet.

Malon was still trying to fend off the creature although it was only sitting just beyond her reach hissing. Link grabbed her shoulder and started to back away toward the gate. "Malon." He whispered, "We need to go, we've gotta get inside the gate."

She didn't respond, just stood there swinging the sword back and forth. He shook her a little bit by the shoulder. "Malon we've gotta go, this thing is too strong."

Still unresponsive.

Link reached around her arm and tried to take the sword. She held it tight, and there was no way Link could wrench it from her grasp without exposing them to another attack. The creature seemed to realize she wasn't actually going to attack. It was starting to move forward warily, ducking occasionally to avoid the slowly swinging blade.

Link reached around Malon and grasped the sword with both hands. He held it out it front of them, ready to fend off the creature, while pulling Malon back with him.  
She seemed stunned, and Link was forced to drag her along with him. Her feet left shallow furrows in the soft dirt.

The creature started to attack, but Link adjusted the sword and cut it off. It jumped away from the sword and suddenly it was gone, disappeared into the night.

Link warily watched the shadows around them as he pulled Malon and himself to safety. Soon they were inside the walls of the ranch, Talon slid the gates shut behind them and they were safe. Talon helped Link carry Malon into the house and to her room. As they laid her down on the bed, Talon said, "You don't have to sleep in the loft this time, there's an extra room downstairs. You can sleep there."

Link took the cue and left to search for the room, wondering when he had ever slept in the loft.


	16. The Ranch Part Five:That Dark Night

Wow I'm so sorry for the wait but I'm back on the story. I sorta got derailed because I started an Adventure Time story, and then I started playing Cave Story. Then I played it again. and again.

It's probably one of the best things ever made and I love it. I plan on doing a CurlyxQuote story soon. Anyone who has played Cave Story, you should check it out. Anyone who hasn't, you should play it, then join column A.

Anyway, I'm going to be working on this story more frequently now(I hope). Hope you like this chapter.

Huzzah!

* * *

Malon could feel herself drifting in and out of consciousness. The world around her seemed somehow liquid and unreal. Even as she thought about it, the images sharpened and became clear. Her thoughts seemed more fluent as well.

The skin on her back began to tingle with pins and needles.

Sitting up, Malon slid a hand up her spine, scratching the skin in an attempt to relieve the sleeping flesh. Afterward, she stretched her arms out to their full extent, unintentionally releasing a deep yawn in the process.

She started to get out of bed, but froze when she saw Link. He was sitting in a chair by the door. Less sitting and more sprawled out sleeping on the chair. Dark circles were visible under his eyes. His mouth was hanging open and a thin stream of spittle had dripped from the crack.

Seeing Link, Malon started to remember the events of the night before.

There was a sound coming from outside. Malon had been asleep until some unknown noise had woken her. Lying still, she listened, hoping that the sound might come again. Her luck must have been with her because only moments later Malon heard a voice from outside.

"So we're stuck here all night?"

The words seemed to cut through the still night air. It felt familiar, the voice. She felt like she had heard it before and somehow it seemed important. Just as the curiosity began to border on frustration, Malon heard a second voice. She recognized the voice at once, having heard it for all of her life.

"Unless Malon or Ingo wakes up."

The voice was that of her father. It was just a moment before she recognized the first voice as Link's. Leaping from her bed, Malon rushed to where she kept a half full oil lantern. Running out of the room she lit it with a match from the kitchen. As she headed out into the night, she felt the true cold and began to regret coming outside in nothing but her thin pajamas. But she was already outside and it was too late to turn back.

When Malon reached the gate, she fumbled with the latch for a moment before it fell away. With a momentary struggle, Malon pulled the gate open and slid through the crack. As she stepped outside the safety of the walls, Malon started to feel defenseless and suddenly realized that she was, in fact, completely and utterly defenseless.

Once again she cursed herself silently for her lack of forethought, but continued on in search of Link and her father.

A figure came barreling out of the darkness toward her and Malon began to panic. Holding the lantern out ahead of her as her only defense, she saw that it was her father.

Apparently he didn't see her, though, and ran right into her, knocking Malon to the ground on throwing the lantern from her hand. Even as she fell, Malon could hear her lantern shatter on the ground and silently mourned the loss of one of her most useful things.

But her father as back, and so was Link, so this couldn't be a time of mourning.

Her father stared at her with wide eyes for a moment before saying, "Malon we've got to get back inside."

"But-but what about Link?"

"He's gone, I saw it get him. We've got to go."

"What!?" Malon gasped out, her eyes starting to burn with what would be tears. "Is he still alive?"

"I don't know, I didn't see."

Malon started to feel her breath coming in short ragged gasps. Link, dead. No it couldn't be. He had to be wrong, he just had to be. He couldn't die after everything. He, just couldn't.

Malon nimbly stepped around her father, scooping up a thick branch that had been set alight by her torch.

"Malon come back!"

But she just kept running. Link couldn't be dead. Maybe he was still there, still okay.

Malon ran headlong into the darkness, not even caring what she ran into. All she cared about was finding Link, proving that her dad was wrong and that Link was really okay.

Malon was running so fast that she almost ran straight past Link when she found him. He was lying on his back barely moving. One of his arms was sort of twitching and the fingers were spasming as if he was reaching for something.

"Are you okay?" Malon tried to ask, but the words never left her throat. She saw the reason Link was on the ground. A small skeletal creature between three and four feet tall had both bony hands wrapped around his feet and was pulling him away from the ranch.

Suddenly Link shouted at her, "Get away!"

Looking at his face, Malon realized that this was the first time she had ever seen him afraid. Whatever that thing was, it was different from what he had encountered before.

In an attempt to drive it away, Malon stooped down closer to it and waved the burning branch at the thing. It just stared at her, not even moving. It didn't even seem scared of the fire. Not even a little.

Link started to speak again, this time his voice was trembling. Malon wasn't sure if it was from fear or from pain, because she now saw that there was a large deal of blood oozing from his ankle. "You can't hurt it! Only the sword hurts it!"

At those words, Malon stopped waving the torch. It wasn't doing anything anyway. "Where's the sword?"

His voice was trembling even more, probably from fear. Malon could feel something coming from the skeleton, something draping over her mind like a net. Each movement was a struggle.

"Malon is that you?"

Frustrated, scared, angry, Malon barked, "Yeah! Where's the sword?"

Link didn't answer for a moment, Malon was unsure if he was struggling against the skeleton's mind net, or if he simply couldn't remember.

"It's behind me, over there somewhere." His arm flailed, indicating where she should look.

She dreaded leaving him there, but Malon needed to get the sword. Regretfully turning her back on him, Malon rushed in the direction he had indicated. After a few seconds, Malon's toe struck something that felt heavy and sword-shaped.

She grabbed the weapon up from the floor and returned to Link. He was several yards farther away than where he had been. That thing had moved him, trying to escape while her back was turned. But Malon had the sword now and there was no way it would escape with Link.

She swung the sword at it, and was surprised by how quickly the skeleton jerked out of the blade's path. Twisting the weapon around unskillfully, Malon attacked again. The creature escaped injury a second time. But suddenly the net seemed heavier, burning her mind and trying to force a way into her head. Just as Malon was starting to attack a third time, the net burned a hole in her mind and Malon could feel the sticky presence inside of her thoughts.

It burned and expanded, isolating her from everything. Her body felt numb and seemed a million miles away from her. Malon watched as the thing blew through any semblance of a defense like floodwater over a sandcastle. But just as it was propelled into her mind, Malon was inside of it. She could feel something, some type of emotion. It was trapped, locked away, hidden, and it had been unsuccessfully killed. But it was there. Malon didn't know what to call the emotion, but the most similar thing she could think of was love.

But there were other feelings, darker ones. Loss, fear, anger, hate, betrayal, distrust. They were packed over the love like sedimentary layers. Layers of evil, and on the surface there was something darker than all those beneath. It was crusty and decayed and evil. That was the thing invading her mind. That was the thing attacking Link. That was the darkness of this creature.

But beneath all those dark feelings, Malon could still see that dormant seed of love, unfed and isolated, but still alive. But what had this thing loved? What did this dark, evil, tormented creature love?

As if it strove to answer her, Malon saw a memory coursing through her mind. It was of a young boy and his mother. They were walking together in the courtyard of Castle Town. A dog was being chased by an even younger girl as an big lady looked on worried. But the boy overlooked everything else in the place, favoring his mother, because in her eyes he saw love. And he loved her too.

Suddenly the memory melted around her and the thing retreated from her mind. As if it was afraid of her knowing about that memory. But then why had it offered the memory up to her? She would never have found it without the thing's assistance

Just as the sticky feeling consciousness left her, Malon's eyes flicked open. They darted around, taking in the room around her. It was a small room. It was safe room. It was her room. Where she had slept every night since she was a child. Whatever evil was contained inside that skeletal creature, it could not reach her here.

Malon heard something shift, and deep within herself she knew it wasn't the house settling. She scouted the room with her eyes and they rested upon a figure by the door. It was sitting almost perfectly still. Malon listened and she heard whispers floating through the air.

"I can't let that happen again. I can't let her get hurt. I, I can't."

Malon's eyes felt heavy so she shut them.

* * *

Thank you all for reading this, it means so much to me. Please review.


	17. The Away

I'm back! Sorry for making you wait so long. I made a massive misjudgment about how much I can handle, so now I have four active stories, school, and worrying about a girl, and pursuing my musician amitions(Hehe, that kinda rhymes), AND sleep. Apparently I'm not allowed to fail school so I guess that sorta takes precedence over my stories, at least according to my parent's wacky view of the world. But don't worry, my stories are pretty high on the list and I write whenever I can.

Well, here's your chapter. There is actually some plot development(gasp!) in this one. And I've actually broken away from the three chapters at the ranch, one chapter of the temple, three chapters at the ranch, rut that I was about to fall into.

Well, here's your chapter for real (When I said it up there, I was lying), please review so I can excuse my late night typing. :)

Well actually its not mandatory that you like me, all I'm gunna say is that disliking me carries a very heavy punishment.

Dammit, here's the story, I swear I'm telling the truth this time. No more getting sidetracked. Go ahead, read it. You're free.

* * *

In the process of remembering the night before, Malon set loose a sinking chill over her body. Moving carefully and silently past Link's sleeping form, she stepped into the hallway.

Though she was in the hall for less than a second, something barreled into Malon and nearly knocked her to the ground. Powerful arms wrapped around her and nearly cut off her air supply.

After the initial moment of confusion, Malon immediately recognized her assailant. Her father's gruff voice resounded happily in her ears. "Oh Malon, I'm so glad to be home."

She returned the bear hug to the best of her ability. Malon felt a tear run down her cheek. Even though this was probably the happiest she'd been in years. Her dad was back and no matter what happened now, everything was going to be okay.

After a few moments, he reluctantly released her and said with an ear to ear grin, "And don't you worry about having to take care of the ranch for me. I'm gunna make sure I do my fair share. How bout some breakfast?"

Malon started to hesitate before amiably agreeing. Remembering back to her childhood, Malon knew that her father was no chef. But she didn't want to offend him, so she always swallowed the meals with a smile.

"Should I wake up Link?" Malon said without thinking.

Her father hesitated for a moment before saying, "Uh, sure, he's probably rested enough."

Malon had felt guilty as soon as the words left her mouth. Not only had Link saved them from the creature last night, but now he was going to be subjected to her father's cooking.

Poor Link…

But just as she said she would, Malon went to the next room and shook Link gently by the shoulder.

His eyes suddenly wide open, Link leapt from the chair. His gaze swung wildly around the room for a few moments before becoming fixed on Malon.

"Malon!" he muttered in surprise, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," she said with a smile, "I'm fine. Thanks for bringing my dad back safely. We're gunna be having some breakfast soon, do you think you'll be able to come eat with us?"

"I, I don't think I can," he mumbled, "I've got to, um, take care of some stuff."

"Well it can't be so important that it outweighs eating. I mean, you won't be able to keep up if you haven't had anything to eat."

"Umm, well," Link said, apparently trapped.

"Then that's settled," Malon said cheerfully, "If nothing comes up after breakfast, then you can go take care of your, stuff. I'll see you downstairs in a few minutes."

Then she left him there struggling to form a reply.

* * *

More than a few minutes later (about half of an hour), the three of them were gathered around an aged wooden table. It was a simple table, adorned with little more than food laden plates and the occasional bit of accumulated clutter.

The plates each bore two pieces of blackened toast, some runny scrambled eggs, and a thick slice of crumbly bacon. Off to the side was the meals redeeming feature, a tall glass of their very own Lon Lon milk.

Malon had perfected a system over the years, and it involved taking a gulp of milk between each bite in an attempt to vanquish the evil taste. Her dad never seemed to notice, so the ritual had continued unabated through the years. It seemed that Link was adopting the technique, shoveling food in, then drowning it with the sweet milk.

All the while, Link was thoroughly thanking them for the food and for letting him sleep there. As if it was he who should be grateful instead of the other way around.

Aside from Link's frantic appreciation, there was little conversation during the meal. Until her dad asked her a question, that was.

"Malon, how's the farm been doing?"

Just a simple question, but with no simple answer.

"Umm, it's been, holding on."

Something dark flitted across her father's eyes. But it was gone as quickly as it had appeared. He had built Lon Lon Ranch from the ground and anything that happened to it always struck him hard.

Attempting to remedy the situation, Malon quickly said, "The garden's gone but it shouldn't be too hard to get it back in order. And the pasture will probably need to be reseeded. Other than that there's just a few repairs scattered around."

"Well," he said, "I think we should try and get things back in order. I can take care of the garden and the pasture easily enough, but what kind of repairs?"

"There's a couple of broken hinges, one of the barn stalls just plain fell off. There are some damaged fence posts, and a broken window. A bit of a hole opened up in the barn roof, but that shouldn't be too important until the rains start. Oh, and I think some of the firewood has started rotting."

He just sat there silently, thinking it over. "Well, me and Ingo can take care of most of that by the end of the week. But we'll need to get some of those supplies from outside the ranch. Like the hinges, and the window, and I think we'll have to buy some firewood this late in the season. Normally I'd say we should see what Kakariko has, but I've been living there and I know what they have. I think the only place we can get what we need is from Harris's ranch."

"But dad, doesn't Uncle Harris live out beyond the woods?"

"Yeah, you're right. Didn't even think of that, I've heard a few stories about people getting lost in the woods and not coming back. We'll have to find some other way. I don't want to lose you this soon after coming back."

She sighed. She hadn't seen her Uncle in a long time, and he was always able to bring a smile to her face.

"I could go."

They both looked at Link.

"I, I'm from the forest. I lived there when I was a kid. If I went with her there's no way we'd get lost."

"That's right dad," Malon said, suddenly excited, "He's a Kokiri. He lived most of his life in that forest."

Link looked at Malon with a curious look in his eyes. "How do you…" he started to ask.

"I'll tell you later, "She said, "Right now we need to get the cart loaded up."

The pair of them got up from the table and headed outside to the wooden horse cart. Malon instructed Link on what to pack, while she started to attach a horse to the front.

* * *

Within ten minutes they were ready to head out.

The horse pulled them out the gate and began heading toward the forest.

For a few minutes he just watched the scenery flow past. It was much easier to admire the countryside when he wasn't walking. But even as Link watched the land, a question itched in his mind.

Finally bowing to the pressure, Link asked, "How did you know that back there? How did you know about the Kokiri?"

Link looked at Malon and saw a worried look on her face. As if she was unsure of something.

Then suddenly she said, "Because I used to know you."

"What do you mean? I never met you until a couple weeks ago."

"Yes you did, "She said, "But you don't remember."

"You're right I don't remember." Link said defensively, "It never happened."

"Yes it did. Something happened after that and it made you forget me. We used to be friends when we were kids."

Suddenly Link's resistance dropped. He had tried to forget what a coward he had been as a kid. How he had failed the world and dropped it into this dark future. But still it had caught up with him. Vainly he had thought that Malon wouldn't realize who he was. Wouldn't realize what he had done. But still it had happened.

Link sighed. "Then you must have known what a coward I was."

"What do you mean?"

"When Hyrule needed me, I tried to run away. And because of that, all of this happened. All of this is my fault."

"No you didn't."

Link looked up at her, desperately wanting her words to be true. "Of course I did. If I had just faced my fears and done what I needed to, none of this would have happened."

"No, I knew you. I knew what you were like, and you wouldn't have run away from something you needed to do. And I know for a fact that you didn't run away. The last time I saw you, you were heading for Castle Town. I watched you run up to the gates, some horses came out, then you went in. I sat there and waited for you to come back, but you never did. Whatever you went to do, you must have done it."

"I,I didn't. I failed Malon. Everything I did was for nothing because I couldn't stop it from happening. I could have, I just know it, but for some reason I didn't. I did something that caused all of this. I know that."

"I don't believe that." Malon said, "I don't believe that for a second. I knew you, probably better than most other people did, and if there was a way to stop this, you would have done it. Whatever happened to cause this, it wasn't your fault."

"Yes it is, I just know it is. I don't know how, but I do."

"You must be remembering wrong, maybe whoever took your memories, maybe they changed something. All I know for sure is that this isn't your fault."

"Of course it is." Link said, starting to raise his defenses again, "I did this."

All Malon said was, "It's not your fault. I know it and somehow I'm gunna prove it to you."

* * *

A deep silence fell over them as the cart rolled into the woods. Shadows were cast across the world, stretching and distorting all they saw. The darkness didn't seem evil, just dead. Like the grey of a corpse's skin. At the sides of the road, splotches of new plant growth was visible, sprouting where the sunlight touched the otherwise barren ground. The scattered plots of vibrant life made the rest of the forest seem more desolate. Dead trees were scattered among the living ones. Many of the plants had a dark hue that nothing alive should carry.

Link felt like they were being watched. He swiveled his eyes around, inspecting the surrounding area.

Nothing

Pulling out his bow, Link kept a close watch on the passing scenery.

Still nothing

Nevertheless, Link kept himself prepared for a sudden onslaught. Because some part of him knew that there would be. Any second now, a dozen Stalfos would come bounding onto the road. Or maybe it would be Wolfos. Or Moblins.

Or anything really.

But whatever it was, Link would be ready for them. Because even though she had tried to dissuade him from his quest, Link felt something for Malon. Some part of him knew that while many things were inconsequential and disposable, including himself, she was not.

So he would be prepared to demolish anything that threatened her.

Link scanned the road behind them, ready to pull the string and kill a monster at a moment's notice. Ready to protect the girl driving the cart, who had saved him twice already, and who had apparently been a part of his past. Whoever she was, she must have been important to him before, just as he must have been important for her to remember him after all those years.

But this wasn't the time to think. This was the time to be ready. Ready to protect Malon and risk himself to keep her safe.

He watched the world around them. Watched for what couldn't be seen and for what would most definitely be seen. Watched for what he hoped he wouldn't see and for what would mean certain death if he saw it.

And waited, waited for the time when she was in danger's path, so he could extinguish the danger with an arrow or a swing of his sword.

* * *

Did you catch my almost Good Will Hunting reference? I really wanted to go through with that, but it would've screwed up my plot. Maybe I'll use it later. I'm going to make a promise (and hopefully I can keep it), I will update every week. I might actually be able to go through with that, because as my eldest child, I love this story the most. Anyway, let me know what you think. Do Link's thoughts at the end seem a natural progression? Or did it seem like I forced him to start liking her? I really want my story to be as good as it can possibly be, so give me your opinion.


	18. As Guests

Link watched the shadows shift as the forest canopy shuddered in the breeze. Everything seemed calm, peaceful and calm. But a part of him remained on guard, knowing that there was bound to be an attack at any moment.

He had long since lowered the bow to his lap and was holding a single arrow loosely in his hand.

As the cart trundled through the forest, Link began to feel as if all was as it seemed. That just maybe a peaceful day was just that, peaceful. Maybe there wouldn't be any more lives cut short. No blood spilled on his hands. And Link relished the chance to take a rest from the near constant carnage.

Beside him was Malon, she was still holding the reins in her hands. Loosely now, having relaxed in the same way as Link. Her gaze remained steady, stuck on the path ahead. Watching the miniscule changes in the road. One minute it was a rocky path, the next a sand covered lane.

What remained the same was the shadows cast over the world around them. They never seemed to change in any major way. Just the same old shadows slipping back and forth across predetermined paths. Left, pause, right, pause, left. Always the same.

Malon closed her eyes tightly for a second, trying to shut out the monotony for a moment.

"Are you okay?" Link asked, noticing her twisted facial expression.

"What? Oh, yeah. I'm fine. I'll just be happy to get out of this forest. Everything seems the same no matter how much of it I see."

Link smiled a little, "Funny, that's kinda what I thought about those open plains after I left here the first time. I mean, each tree is unique, you've just got to find the distinctions and then it's simple. Like that one over there has a knot close to the stump. And that one has two branches that are really low, good for climbing on." He said, reminiscing about his childhood. "But I know what you mean, it'll be good to see full sunshine again."

Link's short speech caused Malon to try and see the distinctions. She tried hard to take notice of all the details around her, but it just made her head hurt.

"Hey look," Link said, "Looks like the woods are letting up."

Malon looked up and saw that it was true. About twenty yards straight ahead the trees stopped suddenly and gave way to a brilliantly lit world.

Within a minute they were soaking in the sudden sunshine. At first it had burned their eyes, but after a few seconds they had adjusted. They were riding through a field. To their right was a huge fallen log that was hollowed out. Some living trees stood in a cluster off to their left. Otherwise, the only plant life was grass and the occasional shrub.

Malon guided the cart through the field, heading for her Uncle Harris's. They took a valley off to the left. Passing the trees, Link could see some weird bird sitting in them. One of them swooped down, and with frightful speed, it snatched a turtle up from its hiding place in the grass.

Link tried to ignore the bird, focusing instead on the road ahead.

The valley had steep walls on either side. At one point there was a fork in the road, and Malon took the right branch. After that it was only moments before they rode into a ranch that Link assumed belonged to Malon's uncle

They rode up to the house and Malon jumped down from the cart quickly, leaving Link to pack away his bow before joining her. As he neared, Link heard Malon knock on the front door of the farm house and shout, "Uncle Harris! It's me, Malon."

By the time Link had reached her, the door was swinging open to reveal a stocky man who held a faint resemblance to Talon.

"Malon!" He said in a deep hearty voice. "It's good to see you again. How've you been doing?"

"Not so good, "She said, "Have you heard anything about what is happening in Hyrule?"

"No, I don't get much word from Hyrule"

Malon told the man what had happened. About Ganondorf overthrowing the royal family and ruling the country as a tyrant. Then she told him how the evil king has used some sort of magic to control Ingo's mind. She told him how Ingo had forced her dad off the ranch and let it fall into disrepair.

"Wow…" Harris said, "That's, that's some news."

"Yeah, but Dad's back now, and we need to get some supplies to fix up the ranch before winter."

"Good, I'm glad to hear he's got his ranch back. What do you need?"

"Three hinges, one for a barn stall. A window if you could spare one, and some firewood too."

"I'll see what I can do, come on, I'll show you round to the firewood and you can take some of that."

"Thanks Uncle."

"Anything to help out family." He said with a grin.

Harris led them to the backside of the house where there was a huge mound of firewood. "Don't take all of it." Harris said, "I've gotta stay warm too, but take whatever you need."

"Thanks Uncle." Malon said sweetly.

Then he left them there to go look for the hinges and a window.

The two of them loaded bundles of firewood into the back of the cart. Once they had accumulated a decent amount of logs, Link and Malon went inside the house for the first time.

It was relatively plain, but had a few adornments. A couple of pictures handing on the walls, and a tan tablecloth on the table.

There were three hinges on the table, one significantly large than the others. Link could hear Harris grumbling somewhere in the small building.

"Uncle Harris." Malon called out, "We're finished with the firewood, do you need help looking for something?"

"Nah I can find it." He responded, "Why don't you two go unhitch the cart horse and put it in the stable. You can spend the night."

"That sounds great Uncle, thanks." She called out, "Come on Link."

The two of them went outside again, and unhitched the horse. Well, it was mostly Malon unhitching it, and Link clumsily fumbling with the buckles and straps.

It took about ten minutes, and by the end, the only thing Link had accomplished was to pinch his hand in one of the buckles.

Once the horse was put away with the stables, they went back inside.

It was darker now, and a few candles had been lit to extinguish some of the shadows.

"Uncle!" Malon called out, "We're all done out there. Have you found the window?"

"Yeah." He responded, "Just give me a second to get it down."

After a about a minute, Harris walked into the room with a window tucked under his arm. "Got it." He said, setting it down next to the hinges. "Now let's go get some dinner started."

* * *

About an hour later, they were all feeling stuffed. Harris showed Link to a room her could use, and Link thanked him.

Before Malon headed off to the guest room she usually used, her uncle stopped her. "I've gotta know," He asked, "What's going on between you two?"

"What do you mean?"

Her uncle didn't say anything, just looked at her with a how-stupid-do-you-think-I-am type of look.

Malon sighed and said, "He's a friend. A really old friend. From back before the whole world went crazy."

Her uncle nodded, somehow silently beckoning her to continue.

"He, uh, the last time I saw him, he was trying to stop Ganondorf, the man who is responsible for it all. But I guess he wasn't able to, because it happened anyway. But he never came back, and for a while I thought he was dead. But a few weeks ago he showed up again, but I think something happened to him, and he can't remember me."

Her uncle nodded again, acceptingly this time.

"Well whatever you feel for him, I think he feels the same. He just doesn't know it yet."

Malon blushed and averted her gaze.

Her uncle smiled and said, "Now why don't you head off to bed, I bet your dad is gunna want to see you back home as soon as possible."

Malon nodded and muttered, "Probably…"

"Well, g'night."

"Goodnight," Malon said before slipping into the second guest room.

* * *

She lay there in the dark, thinking.

Malon wasn't completely sure of how she felt toward Link. She felt something, that was for sure. Something warm, and soft. He'd been her friend back when they were both kids. What if they could be more than that now that they were adults.

Malon's chest felt fuzzy thinking about it.

And if what Uncle Harris said is right, Link is thinking the same type of thing.

Malon shut her eyes and smiled in the dark.

She drifted off to sleep and dreamed of Link.

* * *

Not much to this chapter but we did learn a little bit about how Malon. Gunna be more substance to the next chapter, maybe a little bit of the two of them discussing feelings and stuff. Not too much though, there's still plenty of story left to stretch that out. Anyway, thanks for reading and please review.

See you again next week (Hopefully)


	19. The Return

And now returns the exploits of Link and Malon!

Sounds exciting doesn't it. Well you'll have to read and find out. :)

* * *

Link awoke in a cold sweat.

His breath was coming in short ragged gasps.

He could still see them, those things that had been inside his head.

Were they friend? Or foe? Was there any way to tell? Just a thousand outreaching hands coming toward him. One of them had grabbed onto the edge of his tunic. Another, and another hand. They were all over him, pulling, tearing, dragging him down. Falling. He was falling backwards. Tripping and tumbling into the deep chasm that awaited him.

But as he fell, Link saw a hand reaching for him from above. It was different from the rest, it seemed to shine blatantly against the foreboding atmosphere of this place.

This was a friend. Link reached out for the new hand, stretching his fingers to their extent. But whatever he did, Link couldn't touch the new hand. Couldn't even brush his fingers against it.

The new hand reached down closer, and was about to take Link's fingers in its own. But as Link watched the hand envelope his, the whole world froze. A deeply chilling cold fell over everything and Link started to shiver. He could hardly breathe it was so cold, but somehow the air got even colder. The air turned white and the new hand faded from view.

He was in a place where there was nothing. Just him, and this empty expanse. But then a voice burned in his ears. He had heard it before, heard it a thousand times before, because this wasn't the first time Link had experienced this surreal nightmare.

The voice spoke just two words, then Link was wrenched from his unconscious state and thrown into the waking world.

Just two words, "Not again…"

Then Link was awake. Gasping and drenched in sweat, he sat up in the bed trying to calm himself. That dream. It meant something, it must've. But what? What could that possibly mean?

Looking around the room, Link saw that the morning light was filtering through thin curtains.

Time to get up.

Link got out of the bed and redressed in his tunic.

As he left the room, Link was still puzzling over the dream.

* * *

Malon opened her eyes and her first feeling was one of panic.

It was already light out. There were so many chores to be done and she had wasted so much time by sleeping in. Stupid. Stupid! How could she do this?

But then she remembered where she was.

There were no chores to be done today, except to return to Lon Lon Ranch.

Malon got out of bed and got dressed in a change of clothes she had brought with her. Replacing the fresh clothes with the worn ones, Malon refilled the knapsack and slung it over her shoulder.

When she left the room, Malon noticed immediately that the house was silent. It seemed as if she were the only soul in the world.

Yet when she walked outside for a breath of fresh air, Malon saw Link sitting on a stump staring off into the distant forest.

She walked up and sat next to him on a nearby rock. "How's it goin?" She asked warmly.

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?" She asked perplexedly.

"I'm not sure, I'm just feeling weird. Like I'm hot and cold at the same time. Almost like all the different parts of me are in different places far away from each other. Have you ever felt something like that?"

"I think I know what you mean. Like you're not really sure what to feel. Just with all these different things happening at once, and you should be grateful for one thing, and sad for another, and scared and maybe even angry. So you feel them all at the same time…"

Link looked over at her, "What happened?" was all he said.

"My, my mom died. I was just a little girl at the time, and my dad told me she just went away for a while, and that she would be coming back any day. So I just kept waiting, and every day I would watch the edge of the forest, cuz that's where my dad said she'd gone. Somewhere far away, on the other side of the forest, and that it was going to take a long time for her to get back. I don't know what happened, maybe my dad just couldn't stand it any longer, watching me wait every day for something that was never going to happen. So one day he just came out and told me. She'd been out delivering milk to Kakariko and a, a Stalfos came out of the forest and took her away." Malon snapped her fingers softly, "Just like that. And she was gone."

Link looked over at her. Somehow he'd thought he was the only one who had gone through hardship. As if it was all for him because of what he'd done. But as he listened, he realized that Malon had been through a loss just as terrible, if not more than his own. Link had never known his parents, but she had known her mother. Which was worse?

Malon was holding back a sob now and Link could see it in her eyes. "And my dad, I, I could tell there was something wrong when he told me she was a-away. But I still w-waited. When he told me the truth, he just broke down, and started crying. He, he just let it all out there. He'd been holding it in for so long and he just couldn't do it anymore. I was sad that my mom wasn't coming back, and I was confused too, because I'd never seen my dad cry before. And I was so mad at the Stalfos, I, I almost went into the forest, you know to try and bring her back." Malon smiled weakly. "Like I could just walk in there and get her back. I never did, because I was so scared of the monsters and the forest. I still am, "She looked over at Link, "That's why I'm glad you came with me. I can't even go near the forest without thinking of my mom. "Tears started to well up in her eyes and Malon choked out, "I'm sorry, for making you listen to all that. It just, slipped out."

Link didn't say anything, he just leaned over to where Malon was and put an arm around her shoulders. For a moment she resisted, but then she leaned up against him and they both stared at the forest edge.

The two of them stayed like that for a while. Close together, staring off into the distance.

After what seemed like hours of that, Malon heard some sounds of activity from the house behind them, and it broke her out of the trance.

"We should," Malon said with her cheeks feeling slightly warm, "We should probably get ready for the trip home."

"Yeah," Link said slowly, "Let's go do that."

* * *

It was about an hour later.

The actual packing took only a few minutes, but her Uncle insisted that they stay for some breakfast. Fortunately for the two of them, Harris was a much better cook than his brother and after the meal they all felt satisfied.

After a few minutes of lounging around with full bellies, Harris said, "Well, you two should probably get going back to Talon. Tell him I said hey."

Link and Malon stood up and started to head outside, but once Link had left, Harris stopped Malon and whispered. "I saw you two through the window earlier, good luck."

This caused Malon's cheeks to turn scarlet and she mumbled a thank you before exiting the room.

* * *

They were rolling away from the ranch after a few more minutes. A few minutes after that they had slipped back into the premature dusk of the forest's gloom.

Link was alert and cautious for a moment, before succumbing to the calming elements of the forest. He watched the scenery flow past, reminiscing about his childhood among the kokiri. The games , the innocence, the laziness, oh how he missed the laziness.

Link was torn out of his thoughts when a twelve foot tall skeleton leapt out of the woods brandishing a sword and shield.

Stalfos

Link jumped off of the moving cart and drew out his own weapons. The Stalfos wasted no time and immediately began to attack Link viciously. He was fending off strikes from both the sword and the shield, struggling to keep up with the flurry of blows. After a few moments of the savage onslaught, Link saw his chance and move to the offensive. He jabbed his sword in, past the extended shield, and sliced off the creature's skeletal shield arm. Thus defenseless, Link stuck again, severing the spine and separating the legs from the rest of the body. The Stalfos fell to the ground in grotesque heap. Lifting his sword high, Link brought it down on the monster's neck, removing the head and effectively killing the undead beast. It stopped moving and lay still.

Link turned to see Malon backed up against a tree, trying to fend off a Wolfos with a tree branch, while the horse and cart sped off toward Lon Lon Ranch.

Link leapt toward the pair while the monster was distracted and stuck his blade clean between the creature's ribs. If his aim was true, the blade should have puncture both the creature's lungs and it's heart. If that happened it would die very quickly.

The Wolfos dropped to its side and spasmed for a moment before falling still.

Link wrenched the blade away from the corpse and turned to look for more attackers. There was a Moblin heading straight for him, spear held high. And it was far too close to evade. Link bent his knees slightly and leaned to his left side, taking the spear directly in his right shoulder. Link grunted as the metal bit into his flesh, and he heard Malon cry out when she saw him get injured.

Bringing his sword across in a clockwise motion, Link chopped the spear shaft in half before the Moblin lost its momentum. The spear broke into two pieces and the monster continued to advance on him. Link pulled his sword up and held it horizontally in front of him. The Moblin impaled itself on his blade, and the gargantuan corpse fell directly on top of Link.

Shoving it upward with the full strength of both his arms, Link was able to roll the creature off of himself. Link saw a second Stalfos coming toward him, and he jumped to his feet, reaching for the sword still imbedded in the Moblin. He whipped it out and leapt toward the incoming monster, swinging his sword horizontally and taking the monster's head off in one clean swipe.

As the skeleton crumbled in front of him, Link spun around to intercept the next attacker. But there was none. Link dropped his shield to the ground, starting to feel the effects of the Moblin's spear. Gritting his teeth, Link grabbed the spear by the shaft and with a quick jerk he tore it out of his shoulder. After that he held the sword tightly in his hand expecting another onslaught any second.

Malon was crouched on the other side of the path. Just in front of her was a Wolfos. It had a tree branch protruding from one of its eye sockets and it was laying limply on the ground whimpering. Malon seemed less scared of the monster than of the fact of what she had done to it.

She looked up at Link and pleaded anxiously, "Kill it, the poor thing, it's hurt so bad…"

Link walked over to it and pulled his sword high over his head before bringing it down hard and jabbing it straight through the creature's heart. It squealed for a moment, then fell silent.

Malon's face was pale, "That was terrible. How do you-" She faltered, "How do you do things like that, all the time, every day?"

"I, I don't think about it. I try my best not to. If you go any farther than its them or me, that's when it gets hard to do."

Malon was silent, standing up slowly and stepping away from the corpse. "The horse is, the horse is gone."

"Yeah, we should," Link said, "We should get going and try to catch up with it. Come on, let's get away from all of this mess."

Link started to walk away, but realized that Malon seemed to be rooted to the spot. He face was still pale and she was obviously fixating on the memory of the whimpering Wolfos.

Link returned to her and put his arm around her shoulder and guided her gently away from the carnage.

* * *

The farther away from it they got, the better she seemed. Soon the battleground was far beyond their sight. The color had returned to Malon's face, and her eyes seemed less blank.

"Are you doing okay now?" Link asked gingerly.

"Yeah…" Malon said softly, "Yeah I think I'm doing better. Thank you for, for putting it out of its misery."

Link was unsure of what to say, so he muttered, "Whatever you ask."

His arm was still around her shoulders, and Malon leaned closer to him, like she had that morning.

They walked through the forest like that, Link had one arm clenched on the master sword, and the other around Malon.

It was midday and the light around them seemed especially bright.

The forest was silent except for the occasional chirping of birds and chattering of squirrels. Leaves crunched under their feet but the sound was lost in the vastness of the forest.

"What was it like?" Malon asked, "Living out here? With the Kokiri."

"It was," Link fumbled for words, "It was different. There were no obligations, nothing. Every day was all games and fooling around. Somehow the days all blended together and seemed like the same day that never ended. It was fun, but it felt tiring after a while, almost boring."

"Really?" Malon chuckled, "That was my dream as a kid. I think that's every kid's dream. It's kinda devastating to hear that it's actually kinda boring."

Link smiled, "Well it wasn't all boring, it just got kinda old after a while. Doing the same thing, all day, every day, for your whole life. But what was it like for you as a kid?"

"Not so different from that, except instead of playing all day it was working all day. Well, not all day. Just a lot of it. Didn't really get to leave the ranch, so I hardly knew anyone aside from my dad and Ingo. Well, I knew you."

"Yeah, you said something about that before."

"First time I met you," Malon grinned, "I think you were having a panic attack or something."

"I remember that!" Link said, "It was right after I left the woods, I'd never seen so many people before in my life. "

"Yeah, and you were sitting on the fountain. I went over to ask if you were okay and I guess I pulled you out of it. Then you asked for directions to the castle."

"Yeah I remember that, I remember going into Castle town, and getting really scared because of all the people. I sat down at the fountain for a while, but the next thing I remember is being at the castle, talking to the princess. It's almost like you were just cut out."

"For some reason, I think that's about exactly what happened. Well anyway, the next time I saw you, you showed up at the ranch. We played around for a while, and you spent the night. You slept in the loft, and it was really cold that night. I went to check on you and you were shivering so much. I felt bad for letting you stay out there in the cold air, so I brought you a blanket."

"And I think I remember some of that too, I remember being really cold one night. I don't really remember where I was, but it sounds really familiar."

"I guess maybe that was taken out too. Well after that you went off to the Goron city. You showed up a few days later. Some kind of bird or something dropped you from the sky and you just fell like a shooting star. It was really scary."

"Are you sure about that? Because I can't remember anything like that happening. I remember heading down the mountain and straight to the Zora Domain."

Malon smiled, "Not at all," She chuckled a bit, "No offense but you probably never would've known where to go if it wasn't for me. I figured it out for you."

Link listened intently to what was apparently the true version of his memories.

"Well you came back from Zora's Domain pretty quick. We had fun for an afternoon. You gave me a pearl you found inside of some kind of fish." Malon blushed, "I've actually still got it." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small white orb.

Looking at the stone, she said, "I kept it with me the whole time, hoping you'd come back." Then she looked at Link, "And you finally did, so I guess this is a magic wishing pearl or something."

They both grinned.

"So was there anything else before I went to the town?

"Nope, right after that you hurried off and never came back."

Link stared ahead, reflecting on the story of what had truly been. "Wow, you sound like a great friend. For what it means now, I'm sorry I was gone for so long. I would've been back sooner if I could."

Malon smiled and asked, "You still haven't told me what happened. You went to the town, and then what? You just fell asleep for seven years or something?"

Link's face bent into a bitter smirk. "Closer than you think. When I got to the town, it was all too late. The princess was escaping and Ganondorf was chasing after her. He attacked me but I was able to get past him. I went to the temple of time and opened a door to the Sacred Realm. The princess was supposed to be there with me, but she wasn't. And I didn't know what to do. But I stalled for too long and before I knew it, Ganondorf had followed me into the temple. I tried to fight him off by taking a sword from just inside the Sacred Realm, then I sort of fell asleep. In a way. I, got trapped inside my own head somehow. I just sat there agonizing over everything I'd done. How I'd failed, how this whole catastrophe was basically my fault. Then I opened my eyes, and it was seven years later."

"Wow…" Malon muttered, "So you had seven years of your life just stolen away. Do you still feel like you're still a kid? Or did your mind age too?"

"I was, it, I don't think I explained it quite right. That whole time, while I was inside the temple of time, and the Sacred Realm. I was conscious. I barely experienced anything during those years, nothing new, just guilt and regret, but I grew older. Sometimes I feel like I'm older than this body, but some of the time I feel like I'm controlling some kind of puppet. Except the strings are too big and the limbs are too heavy. So the puppet just kind of flails around, trying to seem alive. I, I don't know. Sometimes it's okay, but sometimes it all just feels wrong."

"How do, how do you feel right now?

"I'm feeling okay right now. I haven't really felt out of control like that for a while. I actually feel pretty good when I'm with you."

They both blushed a little bit, but they were too worried about their own reaction to notice each other's.

A moment of silence passed between them. Not an uncomfortable silence, but a point in time where nothing needs to be said. Then walked on through the woods like that, Link's arm was still around Malon's shoulders, though it now hung limply due to the shoulder wound. But Link didn't care about the wound, he felt happy now. Happier than he'd felt since he found himself alone in this strange new world, and probably the happiest he'd ever felt.

The silent continued unbroken for a long time before Malon spoke up and exclaimed suddenly, "Your shoulder! It's hurt!"

"I'm fine. I've been through a lot worse before. I'll be okay."

"No, we've got to get a bandage or something on it. That could get infected if we leave it the way it is. I can bandage it up for you, I know a lot about first aid."

"I'm sure I don't need any first aid. It'll be healed before you know it."

"Please let me work on it. I just don't want it to get any worse. Please."

"Fine."

They stopped walking and Malon sat Link down against a tree. "I think I hear a stream nearby, wait here for a second."

Link looked down at the wound for the first time and realized that the shoulder of his tunic was soaked and there were streams of blood dripping down his arm.

His thoughts quickly moved away from himself and he began to fixate on Malon. What if something happened to her? What if she got hurt and he wasn't there to help her?

Link started trying to stand up, but Malon immediately returned and reprimanded him gently for almost hurting himself more. "Just hold still for a moment and I'll fix it up."

She was holding in her hand a strip of white fabric that was soaked in water and smeared with some kind of green paste. As Malon wrapped the bandage around his wound and proceeded to tie it on tightly, Link noticed with distress that a sleeve of Malon's dress was missing. A moment later he realized that the bandage was almost an exact match of the missing piece of clothing.

"Your dress," Link said sympathetically, "You didn't have to do that."

"No I'll be fine, anything it takes to make sure you're okay."

Link sighed dejectedly, feeling a little guilty now for getting himself hurt earlier. If only he'd known it would upset Malon this much.

It took a few moments, but soon Link's wound was wrapped tightly in the amputated sleeve of Malon's dress.

Gratefully, Link noticed the change in his shoulder almost immediately. The throbbing pain subsided and was replaced with only a faint sense of the wound.

"Thanks Malon."

She smiled and they continued the trek to the ranch.

Within an hour they were approaching the front gate.

As they crossed the boundary, Link said, "I've got to go now."

"Why don't you stay for a bit?" Malon pleaded. "Try and rest your shoulder for a day or two."

"Sorry, but I can't take any more time away from my mission, not even for you." He said the last part with a faint smile.

"Well, if you can't stay here, then promise me this, you'll come back soon."

Holding one hand solemnly over his heart, and the other vertically in the air, Link said, "I promise that I will come back here as soon as I possibly can, even if it kills me."

Malon smiled and said, "No, if it'll kill you, you can take your time. I'd rather you were alive."

"That shouldn't be a problem. What's most likely to kill me is waiting until I can see you next."

They both laughed and Link turned and started off on his journey again.

Malon watched as he walked away. The sun was burning low and it cast a bronze tinge across the whole world. Malon slid one hand into her pocket and ran her thumb over the pearl that she kept there.

She was already missing him.

* * *

Special thanks to madlink 007 for warning me about an awkward scene. Thanks to you this chapter is one paragraph shorter but one heck of a lot better.

Hope you like this chapter. Definitely the most romantic one so far (when they weren't hacking up poor Wolfos). Tell me what you think. Please do, because I'm actually terrified that I made their relationship progress at an unnatural pace in this chapter. I know I'm probably just being paranoid, though, so please review and tell me I'm wrong (or that I'm right, if that's the truth). Also, I'm thinking of getting a beta, so if anyone is interested just message me.

Thanks for reading, see you guys again next week :)


	20. The Waters of Secrecy

Link held his breath as he swam through the water.

Out of habit, not necessity. Since he had obtained the blue tunic from the Zora King, he was able to stay underwater for as long as he needed to.

And that proved necessary in the water temple, since it was located at the bottom of Lake Hylia.

Suddenly Link's head shot above the surface and he immediately drew a deep breath to fill his still-full lungs. Even as he did it, Link realized how absurd the action was. Why would he need to refill his lungs if the air hadn't been depleted?

This Zora tunic was messing with his head, and Link vowed to avoid the confusing garment after he completed this dungeon.

His musings were interrupted when one of the jumping monsters landed directly atop his head. It forced him back underwater, and if not for the blue tunic Link probably would have started gagging on the water.

Carefully staying submerged until he was out of the monster's reach, Link climbed onto one of the floating platforms. Surveying the room he was in, Link headed directly for a nearby door and, after unlocking it with one of the keys he had found, headed through the door.

On the other side, Link was greeted by a familiar sight.

It was Princess Ruto. The very same princess Ruto he had been forced to save from the belly of Jabu Jabu.

For a moment, Link wondered if he could slip back out of the room before she noticed him.

Before he had the chance to try, Ruto spun around and addressed him.

"Link! I've been expecting you."

"Uh, hi princess."

"Just call me Ruto, but don't. There's no time for niceties. I've got something to tell you, but it's going to have to wait. I'm not sure, but I think he's listening somehow. Just take this, and I'll try and help you when I can."

Ruto handed Link a faded piece of parchment.

Before he could unroll it and figure out what it was, Ruto dove into a nearby body of water and vanished.

Carefully unrolling the parchment, Link found that it was a map of the temple. One of the rooms had a mass of tightly spaced miniscule letters written in it.

"Meet me here." It said, "And hurry."

Link rolled the map up and tucked it into his backpack, then he dove into the same water the Ruto had.

With the help of the heavy metallic boots, Link quickly sank to the bottom and began to walk toward a door on the other side of the room.

Between the door and himself, however, was one of the giant oyster-like creatures that inhabited the temple. Drawing his sword, Link approached it cautiously.

However eyeless it was, the thing watched him, and Link knew it.

He jumped forward suddenly, lashing out and hoping to catch it off guard. Link aimed too low, and his blade slid off the creature's tough shell.

Taking advantage of his loss of balance, the oyster-thing launched itself forward, snapping ferociously.

Link was able to dodge its attack by rolling clumsily out of the way. Once he was behind it, Link readied his sword and prepared to attack again. As soon as the oyster-thing turned to face him, Link lashed out and jabbed his blade deep inside the creature.

Twisting the weapon and wrenching it from the beast, Link stabbed it in again and watched as the monster seemed to melt into a goo-ish substance.

Link continued on his way to the door, stepping through it to find himself face to face with Ruto again.

"It's a lie" She said matter of factly.

While the suit somehow allowed him to breathe underwater, speech was a technique only available to him on dry land.

"Rauru, the sage of light. While you were in the temple of time, he messed with your memories, added some, stole some. He couldn't accept that you weren't perfect, and he tried to force you into saving Hyrule against your will. Even though you were doing it on your own before, that wasn't good enough for him. I don't know how much time I have left here, but I need to tell you this."

Link tried to say "why?" but his words disappeared into the water around them.

Luckily for him, Ruto could read lips. "Because I couldn't stand the thought of him doing anything so unfair to my fiancé. "

Link tried to object, but once again his words were lost.

Ruto smiled and said, "Don't worry, I heard about the girl from the ranch. Malon, isn't that her name? All I've got to say is, she's a lucky girl."

As Link watched, Ruto started to fade away, growing more and more transparent by the second.

"Damnit," She said in a very unladylike fashion, however it seemed perfectly Rutolike. "I don't think I'll ever see you again. Not anytime soon. Before I go, just promise me this. Don't let Rauru's crazy scheme get between you and Malon. It's already too late for me, but I don't see why Rauru has to take you away from both of us."

Link smiled, and mouthed the word, "Thank-you".

"Oh, and one more thing before I go." Ruto said with a wry smile, as she leaned forward and kissed Link directly on the lips.

He stumbled backward surprised.

"I think I've been waiting long enough that I deserve that. Just don't start thinking I like you or anything."

She leaned back and let out a laugh, before winking out of existence.

For a few moments, Link just stood where he was, feeling sad and confused, and a little scared.

He missed Ruto more than he thought he would.

Even though he knew she was perfectly fine, Link stood still for a while, mourning her.

Eventually he decided to move on. Complete the temple and return to Malon. Defeat the final monstrous creature, then be free of this damn blue tunic.

Holding the golden key in his hand, Link stared at the large door in front of him. The lock lay on the ground, already removed. All he had left to do was push the door open and face whatever was on the other side.

Dropping the key and letting it fall to the cold wet floor below, Link did just that.

Stepping through the door, Link saw a large pool of water in the center of the room. Several platforms stuck out of the pool.

Pulling the sword and shield from his back, Link stepped out and onto the centermost platform.

The water around him sloshed around in the pool. Some of it splashed up on to the platform.

As he looked deeper, Link saw some sort of orb floating around in the water. That must be it, whatever it was.

It just sat there, floating. Link watched it, feeling a sense of suspicion float over him.

Suddenly the shape darted out of the water and lashed toward his head. Ducking away from the assault, Link nearly fell into the water. As he struggled to maintain his balance, a shapeless mass of water rose up from the rest and locked itself around his ankle.

His feet were pulled out from under him and Link felt himself being sucked into the water.

As the icy liquid flooded over his head, Link felt a pressure wrench his mouth open and force its way down his throat and into his lungs.

With a sickening sensation, Link realized he was drowning.

Whipping his blade out in front of his body, Link felt it hit something and presence lessened. He was able to drag himself to the surface and then out of the water.

Just breathing was an effort. Lying there on the cold, slick tiles, Link's mind raced to figure out the creature in the room with him.

Before his lungs had fully recovered, Link forced himself to his feet and held the sword out in front of him. The blade had hurt it before, hopefully it would work again.

Providing him with a chance to test his theory, a long tendril rose from the water and began to probe the room for him.

Link took a step toward it, then another, then he leapt through the air, his sword brandished in front of him. Cutting through the liquid tentacle, Link disappointedly heard his sword clatter against the tile without making a mark on the limb.

Suddenly something extremely solid hit him squarely in the chest and knocked Link against the far wall. It wrapped around his legs and lifted him into the air. Still dazed from the impact, Link watched as the floor fell away from him and he was dangling in midair.

Link began to panic when he realized his sword and shield were on the other side of the room. He reached hurriedly for his backpack and caught the fairybow as it fell. By some stroke of luck he had also caught an arrow with the same hand.

Stringing the arrow, Link took aim at the orb that floated inside the animated miasma of water and let go. The shaft pinned the purple thing against the far wall and Link fell from his elevated position. He dropped to the hard floor below and scrambled toward his sword.

Taking the blade up in his hands, Link jabbed it deep inside the orb. It squirmed for a moment and Link heard a shrieking noise pierce his ears. Groaning, Link involuntarily let go of his weapon and cupped his hands over his ears. From the corner of his vision, Link saw the orb leap back into the water.

He cursed and dove for his sword. He was able to grab it just as something wrapped around his ankle and dragged him into the water. Once again, the water forced its way into his lungs and Link felt his throat burning and his head pounding.

Link flailed his sword around frantically, hoping to somehow free himself.

Then the orb floated in front of him.

It paused there, not moving at all, as if it was going to watch him die.

Lashing out at the thing, Link's sword missed by a miniscule inch.

Link could almost hear it laughing with derision at the failed attack. It floated away from him and out of his reach.

Link knew he only had a few more moments before all was lost.

Before he would die.

Suddenly a thought sparked in his mind and Link knew he couldn't die. He had promised Malon that he would return. He couldn't break that promise.

But how would he get out of this?

Link racked his brain for an answer to that question.

Malon sat in the barn carefully replacing the hinge on one of the stall doors. All the horses were out in the pasture, so Malon was left in silence and solitude.

As she patiently removed the broken hinge, her thought ran wild. Thinking about the boy she had known, and the man he had become. And whether or not he was okay.

When they had been in the forest, Link had hardly noticed his injury. What if something worse happened to him and he just pressed ahead instead of taking care of it?

What if that injury cost him his life?

She'd been there last time to help him, but she wouldn't be able to help him if he got hurt now.

Malon stopped and took a deep breath.

All that worrying wasn't going to help Link any, and it was driving her insane.

Forcing herself to think of something else, Malon wondered how her dad was doing with the window.

As she busied herself with other thoughts, Malon noticed a bird fly in through the open barn door. It was large and black, making a throaty croaking noise.

It was a crow.

Malon looked at it and the bird seemed to look back at her.

"Hey, why don't you go back outside?" Malon teased the bird.

It croaked back at her as if in response, and Malon felt a chill run down her spine.

Stepping away from her chore, Malon waved a hand at the bird, trying to scare it out of the barn. It hopped to another perch and croaked again.

This time when Malon advanced on the bird, it leapt toward her and started scratching and pecking viciously.

Backing away from the bird in a panic, Malon felt a hand come to rest on her shoulder. For a moment she thought it was her father's and felt comforted.

But then she noticed the pointed nails, the bony fingers, and the icy sense of dread that was creeping up her spine.

Twisting around in a fright, Malon saw a pair of glowing red eyes that she had hoped never to see again in her life.

Link pulled himself onto the beach and collapsed in exhaustion.

His lungs burned because the blue tunic lay in tatters around him. Apparently the magic depended on a mostly whole tunic, and fighting the creature beneath the lake had ruined that possibility.

Link could still feel the suffocating presence around him, forcefully filling his lungs with water. He had been lucky to escape.

For Link, luck came in the shape of an explosive Deku seed that had floated past him just before he drowned.

Slicing it in half with his sword, Link released a blinding flash that somehow stunned the eyeless monster.

Kicking off the edge of the pool, Link barreled through the water and was able to deliver a final blow to the malevolent thing.

All at once the water around him lost its animation and Link simply floated to the water's surface.

Luck…

As he climbed out of the water, a white light burned around him.

Link stood in the chamber of sages just for a moment. Long enough to see Ruto smile at him and whisper, "Good luck."

Link smiled back, then he was gone.

He next reappeared about forty feet underwater, floating freely in Lake Hylia.

Link had probably used up his luck by not drowning before he reached the shore.

Once he had caught his breath, Link struggled to his feet. Standing still for a moment, Link caught his balance and started to walk away from the lake. The cool morning air chilled his wet and half bare body, causing Link to start shivering after a few minutes.

One hand was locked in a death grip around the hilt of his sword, though the rest of his arm was limp, letting the blade drag through the dirt. It left a semi constant trail behind him, marking his progress with a miniscule trench.

At first he wasn't sure where he was headed, his feet wandering as freely as his mind. Walking aimlessly, he finally decided on a destination, the ranch. Of course that was where he should go, he had promised Malon.

So Link marched across the grassy plains with his eyes locked on the horizon, locked on the ranch. Just putting one foot ahead of the other, Link made his way back to Malon.

A feeble grin crossed Link's face at the thought of her. Of her smile and her hair. He felt something for her, what was it? Like a fire in his chest. Was this what it was like to, as he had heard it said before, like-like someone?

It took Link only a few moments to realize that he did, in fact, like-like Malon. Or whatever grownups called it…

He started to warm up, not because of the thought of Malon, but because the sun was rising above the peak of Death Mountain. Something felt weird inside of Link and he knew that he wanted to be with Malon again as soon as possible.

Forcing his tired muscles to carry him, just for a little longer, Link started to run. He ran across the field and felt the sunshine burning on the back of his neck. Somehow a different light was cast over everything he saw, making the whole world seem brighter.

Link ran faster and faster until he was sprinting despite the irritable protests of his exhausted muscles.

Link knew it was minutes, but it felt like hours before he had reached the front gates of Lon Lon Ranch. He stopped just outside to catch his breath before entering.

He walked through the gates, and into the barn where he was sure Malon would be. When she was nowhere to be seen, Link left the barn and went to the field. Though Epona was sure to greet him, Malon remained absent.

Link started to walk back toward the house when he heard Talon call out to him, "Hey Link! Are yah lookin' for Malon?"

"Yeah, you know where she is?"

"She should be in the barn."

"Are you sure? I looked there already."

"Huh," Talon pondered from a distance, "Did yah check inside the stalls? She's in there fixing one of the hinges."

"Oh, "Link said dumbly, "I'll go look again then. Thanks."

"Anytime."

Link ran back to the barn and reentered, positive that he had somehow overlooked Malon and she would be standing in plain sight when he returned.

She wasn't, and Link called out her name before proceeding to check each stall.

When he swung the last one open, it dropped to the floor. Two decrepit and rusted hinges were attached to the side. Carved into the door was a small pictogram carved into the wood.

A skull with colored in eyes

A bird

A drawbridge

Link's hand shook as he began to comprehend the implications of the three pictures.

He turned and ran out of the barn. For a moment he considered saddling up Epona and riding to the town, but then he remembered that he didn't know how to saddle a horse, or how to truly ride a horse.

Link sprinted out the front gates faster than he had sprinted toward them just minutes before.

The city, Malon was in the abandoned ruins of castle town. The town with a drawbridge out front.

Link pumped his arms, trying to gain any additional speed he could. Trying to reach the town by any means necessary.

He bird, a black bird, a crow, a bird of death.

His heart was already pounding in his ears, but Link didn't know if it was from exhaustion or fear. Link hadn't been truly terrified for a long time. Because he didn't care about his own safety, but somehow it knew that.

The skull, with colored eyes. Red eyes. A skeleton with red eyes that had almost killed him before, almost killed Malon before. And it had seen how much he cared about her. Now it was trying to hurt him however it could.

But Link couldn't let that happen. It wouldn't happen, he wouldn't let it happen.

Far overhead a crow cawed, and Link hated it for what it meant. The first time he heard a crow cawing, the Deku tree had died. The second, he had almost died. But he couldn't let Malon get hurt by that thing.

If that happened, then nothing would be okay ever again.


	21. Throwback

Anonymous-Chapter18-(10-31-2012):I'm glad you picked up on that. It will come back later in the next story.

Without further ado, here is your chapter.

* * *

Link leapt across the broken drawbridge, stumbling slightly as he landed on the opposite side.

Sweat was pouring down his face and neck. The fingers of Link's left hand were slick, but they maintained a death grip on his sword. Before that skeletal thing had somehow managed to spirit Link's sword away from him.

But not now, not this time.

If Link lost his sword during this fight, either he would die, or Malon would…

No, that wouldn't happen. Link wouldn't lose his sword.

Running straight ahead into the courtyard, Link saw the scattered horde of redeads milling about. He remembered his first day in this adult body. How he had been scared, guilty, depressed, confused, and all around in a bad place. But then he had met Malon and she had pulled him out of it.

Link couldn't lose her.

"Malon!" Link bellowed, breaking the ominous silence and drawing the attention of the redeads. Part of him hoped that she would just appear safe and sound beside him. Then they could just walk away and return to the ranch.

But she didn't appear, so Link screamed her name again.

A flash of sudden movement caught Link's eye. It was the crow, landing on a windowsill of one of the destroyed buildings.

That must be where they were. Link dodged around the restless corpses and into the marked building. The air was stale and the light was dim. Being filtered through the dust filled air gave it a dusky appearance.

"Malon! Where are you?" Link shouted, hearing his voice echo throughout the ruins.

There was a muffled noise from the second story. After a frantic search, Link found a decrepit spiral staircase and started climbing. Several of the steps were missing and long gone, leaving Link to jump over the empty spot.

Soon he had reached the origin of the sound, and found himself standing alone in a room. Aged pictures covered the walls, some had been torn away or otherwise ruined. But others were still in decent condition. Most of them showed a young boy and what was probably his mother. One showed the boy alone playing with a dog.

A few children's toys were scattered across the floor. A few block covered in mold and dust, a grey and peeling Keaton mask. In the center of the room was a pile of bleached white bones. After a quick and nervous examination, Link decided that the bones were truly dead and would not reanimate.

The growling caw of the crow sent a chill of Link's spine and caused him to turn around in a hurry. Behind him stood the skeletal thing. Only it was somehow different from what he had seen the last time. Where there had been fingers before, the thing's left hand held a set of five curved claws. The teeth that had once seemed human were now pointed and disturbingly canine.

Behind him lay Malon. She was unconscious, as if under some kind of spell.

Link held his sword with two hands, preparing to attack or defend at a moment's notice.

"What do you want?" Link demanded, his voice deliberately flat as to not betray any sign of fear.

Link heard the sound of bone grating on bone, and the complaining creak of aged joints that moved though they shouldn't.

"You… are a… Theif!" The menacing voice growled, suddenly lunging at Link and clawing at him with the oversized talons.

Link stepped back, avoiding the attack but still feeling a sick sense of dread emanating from the creature.

"W-what are you?" Link asked, his voice wavering for a moment before he took control again.

The thing laughed, and it felt like icy nails in Link's spine. "A little boy, barely alive. I am a creation of yours, might as well be my father. Hello daddy, I'm your son and you made me and you made me a monster!"

Another attack, but this time its terrifying claw dug thin furrows into Link's thigh as he tried to avoid the attack.

As the creature's icy bone touched Link's flesh, an image popped into his head. A memory, of something he might've seen before, just not from this perspective. Someone else's memory.

* * *

I looked up at my mother. Behind her the sun was shining. In the corner of my eye I saw a dog running past us. There couldn't possibly be a single cloud in the sky. Beyond my mother, I see a little girl holding her father's hand as they stroll through the courtyard of Castle Town. A cool sweet breeze stirred my hair, pushing it into my eyes. My mother's hand gently swept it back out of my eyes and she smiled at me. I smiled back at her. I saw a white horse riding past us. It was so big I could hardly believe it. I saw two people on its back, one was a little girl and the other was older, though I couldn't tell how old.

* * *

Link snapped back to the present. The thing was coming for him again. With a reflexive snap of his wrist, Link knocked its claws aside and jumped away from the skeleton. Whatever this was, it had some kind of grudge against him.

Taking the offensive, Link struck out quickly against the skeleton. It seemed to slip around his assault and wrap its hand around his wrist.

Before Link had time to react he was plunged back into a sunny day of the past.

* * *

Even as I watched the sky filled with clouds. Dark angry things that seemed ready to throw down lightning and rain and all sorts of unpleasant things. I pointed to them, trying to show my mother that it was going to rain soon, that we should probably head inside. Looking up, my mother let out a sigh of shock and scooped me up in her arms. She started running, her breath coming in quick fearful gasps. Her worry seeped into me and before we had gone two feet I felt tears of fear welling up in my eyes. What could scare my mother so badly? And whatever it was, I should probably be scared of it too. From my place at my mother's shoulder, I could see other people running. Frantically heading for houses, alleys, the field. Anywhere but the town square. Suddenly the sound of laughter cut through the air, freezing my blood and sending chills up my spine. My mother started to run faster, her fear obvious. She held me tightly and I leaned closer. As long as I was with her, nothing could get me.

* * *

Link fell backward and stumbled over some of the toys, dropping to the floor and feeling helpless. No, he couldn't let himself get dragged back into those memories, whoever they belonged to. Link saw the thing coming for him again, and rolled out of the way. He jumped to his feet and slashed the creature across the chest. Several ribs shattered and it recoiled in a flash of pain and fury.

"I never did anything to you!" Link shouted at the skeleton as it recovered itself and tried to regain its footing.

"Lies…" It groaned.

"No! It's the truth. And why would you bring Malon into this?" Link demanded, forgetting caution and stepping toward the downed creature.

"Returning the favor," It said chuckling, "You took what I loved."

Before Link could even comprehend what had been said, the claw wrapped itself around his ankle and an explicit memory flooded his mind.

* * *

"Where are you all going?" said a tall dark skinned man riding a jet black horse. Stepping up to one of the guards he asked, "Did you see the horse?" The guard took a solemn expression and shook his head. Obviously this was the wrong answer and some invisible force tore him away from the ground and tossed him into the fountain. I watched for a moment before my mother covered my eyes with her hand. "Did you see the horse?" I assumed that he was asking a second person. I assumed that they also answered inadequately. A wet sounding crunch resonated through the courtyard. The voice asked again, and again I heard something terrible happen. If I could censor my ears the way my mother killed my sense of sight, I would. "What about you? You there, with the kid in your hands. Have you seen the horse?" Who was that, I wondered. Who could he be talking to now. I felt my mother shake her head slowly. I felt something powerful and unseen come between my mother and I, tearing us apart and sending me flying to the ground. I opened my eyes just in time to see a large cart come flying toward me. It landed atop me and held me against the ground with all its immense weight. Within moments I found I couldn't move at all. I started to scream, feeling terrified and isolated.

* * *

Link found that he had dropped to his knees. His hands were on the floor in front of him. His sword was lying flat on the ground in front of him.

"Now I'm going to kill her."

Link felt himself stop breathing. His hand flew toward the sword and he started to pull himself into a standing position.

He lunged toward the skeleton standing in front of him, standing near Malon. Striking with all the strength he had, Link severed the vicious claw from the skeleton's arm. Link saw the glowing red eyes burn brighter, presumably from pain.

Link hoped that it hurt.

He pulled the sword back again and stabbed it into the skeleton's chest, where the heart would be if it was alive. Its mouth dropped open, a wordless shriek emanating from between the bleached white canine teeth.

Suddenly it started to walk toward him, pulling the sword deeper within its chest. Link saw the hand flying toward his, but he wasn't fast enough.

The remaining bony claw wrapped around his.

* * *

I felt the cart pressing down on me, forcing me to stay still. From somewhere else I could hear my mother screaming. Just a few minutes ago the sun had been shining, why was it so cold now? With a terrifying sort of delight, the voice said, "No, that's all wrong. He can't see the show." Then it laughed. I felt the cart lift itself off me for a moment. Something moved me too. It sort of turned me so I could see my mother. She was standing all alone in one corner of the courtyard. She was crying. Why was she crying? I felt the cart reassert itself and I felt immense pain cutting deep into me. One of my arms was left free but no matter how hard I tried I couldn't move the cart. I felt tears stinging my eyes from both fear and pain.

* * *

Link opened his eyes and realized he was lying flat on his back. He felt some tears in his eyes, fear for his mother, fear of that man who was doing this all. And he wondered why this was happening to them.

Then he shook his head and wiped the tears away. That was someone else, some other time.

But Link knew who the terrifying man was. He knew who the people on the white horse were.

Ganondorf

Princess Zelda and Impa

The last people he had met before entering the temple of time and being sent here.

Then Link thoughts returned to the subject at hand. Malon! Where was Malon?

Link jumped to his feet, reaching for the sword as he did so. Looking around wildly, Link found that he was the alone in the room.

"No…" Link whispered, feeling his last hope die. Somewhere, that thing had taken her away. Somewhere she was probably dead. Link had had the chance to save her but he hadn't been able to. Link screamed, as loud as he could. He screamed out her name, and that he was sorry.

Finally when he was out of breath and dropped to his knees. Link saw something on the floor in front of him. The blocks that he had noticed earlier were arranged carefully in front of him. Each block had a number or a letter on it. They spelled out a phrase.

_7 DAYZ _

_SAM RO0M_

She was still alive. Link rejoiced that she was okay. That his weakness hadn't harmed her. Malon was okay, and Link still had a chance to save her.

Nothing would stop him this time.

Malon was going to be okay because Link would allow nothing else.

The next time Link saw that skeleton, he was going to cut its head off and crush it beneath his boot.

If that killed it, the skeleton would be lucky.

Link put his sword away and started to leave the room, but froze when he heard the sound of beating wings behind him.

Was it the crow? Had it come back early along with the skeleton?

Turning quickly toward the window, Link saw a sight he dreaded.

That owl from his childhood, Kaepora Gaebora.

"You were given a second chance, "it said, "And you may have thrown it away. Have you forgotten the carnage? The deaths that you caused? You wasted your time with that girl before and Hyrule fell because of it. This time the fate of the world hangs in the balance. I cannot let you make such a devastating choice twice."

"I'm doing what you told me to!" Link growled. "There's only two more temples and two more sages. Are you saying that saving a life is a waste of my time?"

"One life or all of them. That is the choice you have."

"Dammit! It's not a choice! I can do both! I am doing both!" Link shouted.

"You fool, you've forgotten haven't you. You thought you could do this before but it resulted in death. Don't you remember? Maybe I need to show you again."

"What?' Link started to say but he was cut off. He felt the air around him grow cold and thin. He couldn't breathe. Link struggled to take a breath. He couldn't move either. Couldn't move, couldn't breathe. Link tried to scream but found he couldn't do that either.

Within a moment it was over, and Link picked himself up off the cobblestones of the Castle Town courtyard. Beside him the fountain gurgled with the splashing of water. The sun was shining overhead.

Link felt a voice inside his head, "You won't die. But everyone else will. And you will remember your duty."

Link saw a white horse bearing Impa and the princess rush past him.

Overhead the sky started to fill with dark clouds.


	22. Youth Part 1:The Cruel Man

"No…" Link muttered in his ten year old voice.

"Dammit Rauru," He growled, "If you can hear me, you're sick. And if you let her die, I'll find you. I don't care how long it takes, I swear I'll find you and I'll kill you."

A voice resounded in his mind, bouncing and echoing. "She's all you care about. You don't care about Hyrule anymore; you don't care about the world. Just that girl."

"You keep saying that. That's all you've ever said, but I'm still trying to save Hyrule. I'm still doing my job."

"How can you say that when you're standing here on the very day you failed the world?"

"I'm not perfect. I didn't realize what was at stake before."

"Because that girl blinded you."

"Dammit Rauru, no, she didn't."

But Link felt the consciousness leave his mind before he spoke and he knew Rauru didn't hear him.

Link looked around the plaza for the first time and saw all the people going about their day. He saw a dog scampering around while a young boy chased it.

He saw the people he'd seen the first time he came to Castle Town, all except for Malon. She was back at the ranch, safe from Ganondorf.

But in the present, she wasn't safe. That skeletal monster had her and Rauru was trying to prevent Link from saving her.

"And they all died because of you…" the voice in his head murmured.

Link looked around at the people again, seeing all their faces, seeing how they seemed so happy though they would be dead in a few minutes.

"And you abandoned them in their hour of need…"

He could have saved them, he really could have. But he couldn't change that now.

"And all you were was a coward…"

"No," Link muttered, "I never ran away, I just didn't know."

"You knew, and you hid, and you hurt the world…"

Link started to respond to the voice in his head, but he stopped when he saw the black horse standing near the road to the castle.

Around him Link saw the townspeople scattering, running away from the evil man known as Ganondorf.

"Where are you all going?" he asked with a dark laugh.

Riding up to one of the guards, he demanded sinisterly, "Did you see the horse?"

The man clenched his jaw in desperation and muttered, "No."

Link watched Ganondorf mutter something then grin as the man was tossed into the air by some invisible force. Tossed directly into the fountain where he was impaled and left to bleed out slowly.

As Link watched he felt his chest grow tight, now with fear, but with sadness for the people in the plaza who he had been unable to save.

Ganondorf walked his horse up to another person. "Did you see it?"

Link watched the person burst into tears, then, unable to speak, shake his head.

The same invisible force shoved him against the fountain and as Link watched, his limbs were torn away from his body and thrown haphazardly around the plaza. Only his left arm remained. But it didn't matter, he would be dead soon.

Link couldn't breathe. He felt like he was choking from seeing this in person. "Rauru…" He whispered, "That's enough, I know what I did. I knew before. Just, get me out of here…"

"You need to see all of it to fully appreciate the tragedy you allowed to happen."

Even as they spoke, Ganondorf was riding up to a mother who was holding her son close to her.

"No…" Link groaned with dread.

"What about you? You there, with the kid in your hands." Ganondorf growled menacingly with a sneer, "Have you seen the horse."

With tears running down her face, the mother shook her head.

Her son was torn away from her, thrown to the floor and discarded for a moment. The mother was lifted into the air, and forcefully pressed into the wall of a nearby building. Blood matted her hair, her screams echoed through the air.

With a thunderous crack, one of the mother's arms was torn out of its socket and tossed haphazardly across the plaza.

Her screams grew even more piercing.

"Mommy!" her son sobbed.

He started trying to run to her but the invisible force threw him to the floor. A large wooden cart flew through the air and landed on the child. He screamed as the weight pressed down on him. He squirmed, trying to escape the wooden prison, but the only thing he was able to free was a single arm.

He flailed around frantically, trying to escape.

Link turned his attention back to the mother. She had stopped moving, stopped screaming. Blood matted her hair and her body hung limply.

"No, that's all wrong. He can't see the show." Ganondorf bellowed with dark laughter.

Link watched the invisible force take hold of the boy's head and turn it so that he was forced to gaze upon his mother's corpse.

He screamed and sobbed. Coughed because he couldn't breathe than he grew silent and just stared, horrified.

Looking back to the mother, Ganondorf said, "That's no face fit for death."

Her expression was one of pain and fear. The invisible force took control of the dead woman's face and contorted it into a wide smile that showed many teeth.

"That's perfect," Ganondorf said, "Now to find that damn princess."

The black horse left the town and headed across the cross bridge.

Link dropped to his knees, feeling dually horrified and tired. He couldn't believe the atrocities Ganondorf had committed, not even the second time he had seen them.

Suddenly Link's vision grew hazy and his breathing stopped altogether. He grew weak and dropped to the ground, unconscious.

* * *

Opening his eyes, Link saw that he was lying face first on a grungy stone floor. Pulling himself slowly to his knees, Link surveyed the room around him.

The lighting was dim and flickering, the only source being the torches that were sporadically placed along the walls.

Standing to his full height of about four feet, Link found himself staring straight into the eye holes of a mossy decrepit skeleton.

"Find…" A cold voice whispered, "The eye of truth…"

Link recoiled from the seemingly animated skeleton, but paused when it didn't move or react in any way.

Stepping away from the skeleton, Link examined the room again. The walls were covered in scratch marks, blood, moss, and some type of slime.

Link shuddered.

"You have more to do in this time" Rauru's voice said from within Link's mind.

Spinning around, Link saw that there was no way to escape this place, only a single door that led farther into the ominous labyrinth.

He was alone, and he was trapped.

* * *

Sorry that there was no conclusion or advancement to Malon's predicament, but I liked the way this chapter ended and anyway, it wouldn't be any fun if I put a problem out there and immediately fixed it. I'm giving it time to stew.

But don't worry, the pace definitely isn't going to be slowing down, at this point the story is planned to have about 30 chapters. And we're almost there so buckle up we're gunna be hitting the climax soon.

And for everyone who wants to see Rauru get beat into a pulp, you'll be seeing more of that in the next story so be patient. I promise it won't disappoint.

This chapter and the next were originally one, so they're both gunna be pretty short. So I should have another chapter for you in just a couple days.


	23. Youth Part 2:The Cruel Place

I swear unto thee, actual plot progression will occur in this chapter, so help me (insert deity here) is my witness. Now read it and weep (or not, that's cool too. It's your choice)

* * *

Holding his sword high, Link shook gently as he crept through the darkened passageways.

With a shiver of dread, his ears picked up the raspy flapping of wings. Spinning around he saw a half dozen Keese (bats, for those of you who ignored Navi) diving toward him.

Link dashed his sword through the center of the mass of watched as the creatures dodged around the weapon. They dropped down onto him and attacked. Several of them latched onto the exposed skin of his face, arms, neck, and legs. The rest began to flutter around his face, confusing him and throwing Link into a panic.

He batted at the creatures and stumbled back and forth, trying to shake them off or escape somehow.

With a sudden sense of chilling realization, Link's stomach did a backflip as he dropped through a hidden hole in the floor.

The stinking air stirred around his falling body and Link dropped into a placid and mossy pond.

He found himself tangled in thick weeds and mud. Struggling against his restrains, Link succeeded after much effort and finally crawled to the dirty stone floor that served as an artificial bank.

He lay there for a few moments, gathering his will to move on.

Finally Link climbed to his feet and headed down an unknown corridor towards who knew where. Turning a corner into an adjacent unknown corridor, Link found himself staring up at the dry and expressionless face of a redead.

His breath caught and Link leapt away from the creature, hoping to escape before it was too late.

Too late

The courage withering shriek filled the air and froze Link in place, forcing him to watch as the towering creature advanced on him and prepared to maul him.

His eyes were locked on its blank face, his ears hearing nothing but each threatening step forward and the constant moaning.

Feeling the numbness fading away from his fingers, Link flexed them as well as he could, hoping to speed the process and make his escape.

The redead reached down, its decayed fingers grasping at Link. Its teeth clamped and unclamped, eagerly awaiting the prospect of a live meal.

Link suddenly snapped out of the hypnosis and quickly stumbled backward and away from the monster. His heard thumping rapidly in his chest, Link dodged around the redead and ran farther up the corridor.

He kept running until the redead was far behind him.

The distance didn't help, since the redead was not the only horror of this labyrinth.

* * *

Link struggled in the grip of the pale and bloodstained hand. Just ahead of him, he could see it coming for him. Its mouth hung open to reveal a multitude of oversized teeth. Two arms were held out limply in front of it. No hands, just pointed stumps of tumorous flesh that bent and clenched, waiting to grab ahold of Link.

Blood stained the creature and was focused around the mouth and hands.

Spinning around suddenly, Link severed the grey arm and quickly turned to face the dead hand.

No hands, just two flabby fingerlike projections, waiting for him.

Forcing himself to defy every instinct imaginable, Link stepped closer to the horrifying creature. He stared into its blank, expressionless eyes and saw hate and the reflection of his own fear.

Its two arms reached for him, hoping to catch hold of him and make fresh bloodstains.

Link held his ground as the gigantic, gaping mouth was lowered to his level, the jaws spread wide as it prepared to feast.

Link drove his sword skyward, stabbing through the underside of the nightmare's bottom jaw and pushed it all the way through until the bloody tip extended through the top of its skull.

For a moment, Link imagined that the dead hand would persist even after being mortally wounded.

For a moment, it did.

One of the hands continued to reach toward Link, stopping a few inches away from his face before dropping limply.

Link withdrew his sword from the creature and watched it fall to the ground. Watched the ground swallow it up and draw the mass of tumorous flesh down into the earth below.

Around him, the remaining infinite hands retreated underground.

Link could still feel the creature's evil in the air.

On the other side of the room, the ground began to bulge until it yielded a chest with rotted wood and heavily rusted iron. Link tried to kick it open as he usually did, but wasn't completely surprised when the whole ensemble collapses under the weight of his meager attack.

Picking through the wreckage, he found a purple magnifying glass with three prongs that extended from the top.

"You have done well without the girl. We will talk before you press onward."

Before the words had stopped reverberating in Link's head, the world around him began to dissolve.

As Link watched the dead cavern was replaced by a totally blank world. As far as he could see in any direction, there was nothing.

He seemed to be standing on nothing at all. As he looked down, Link realized that he was no longer in his childish body, but that of an adult.

"You did well, that I can't deny. It seems you were born to do the job you do."

Link spun around and saw the orange robed man standing just ten feet away from him.

Rauru

"Send me back." Link demanded sternly, "Send me to the day I'm supposed to meet the skeleton again. Seven days from where you took me"

"No."  
"What? Why? I did what you told me to. I killed that damn monster. I took the damn treasure, whatever it is. Just send me back so I can save her."

"No, you're not done. There are two more sages, and then there is Ganondorf you must contend with. That girl has caused enough grief for the world already, and I'm not going to allow you to fail again."

"Let me save her, then I'll finish this. I'll find the two sages, I'll kill Ganondorf. If I'm not there when I'm supposed to be, she'd die. Doesn't that mean anything to you. Are you willing to just throw away an innocent life?" Link pleaded.

"Innocent? Bah! All those who died that day, and all who have died since. She may as well have killed them herself by distracting you from your duty. Every single death is her fault and I will not let her kill again."

"If you don't care about her," Link said coldly, "Then what do you say to this. If you don't send me back, let me save her. If she dies. I'll walk away. I'll leave Hyrule behind and just go away. And it will be your fault. I'll let Ganondorf run his course and you'll have only yourself to blame for it."

The words didn't come easily. It hurt Link to say them, if not physically then mentally, emotionally. But Link couldn't bear the thought of Malon getting hurt, killed because of this man's stubborn irrational hatred.

"If you let her die, I'll let the world die. Your choice."

"You wouldn't." Rauru said confidently, "I know how you think, it would kill you to do that. Knowingly allowing injustice, it would destroy you."

"If she dies, there will be nothing left to destroy."

"No matter what happens to you, no matter what I do. You will always stand up for the weak. It's who you are. You won't do it."

"Maybe not," Link spoke quietly, accepting that the man was probably right. "But if you know me as well as you say you do, you'll believe this. If any harm comes to her because of you…"

Link gritted his teeth, feeling hot blood pumping in his ears. He could feel that little presence in the back of his mind that was Rauru, could feel the man watching his thoughts and emotions.

Link reached for the sword at this back, sliding it slowly and menacingly out of the sheath with a long raspy sigh.

"…I'll kill you. I don't care how long it takes, I don't care where you go to hide from me. If you harm her, directly, indirectly, I don't care. I will kill you. I will take the sword you gave me and shove it through your damn heart. Rip it out and show you what you did to me."

Rauru stood there silently, his eyes locked on Link's. That presence in the back of Link's mind was searching for a bluff, a lie. For something to suggest that Link wasn't dead serious about what he said.

Link's blood boiled as he stared into Rauru's eyes, showing him all the hatred and rage that he could muster.

"I don't believe you." Rauru said. His voice wavered slightly, he didn't think Link noticed, but he did.

"Then believe this." Link said sharply, leaping toward the man. His sword held out in both hands, Link swung it viciously but saw that Rauru had moved out of the way just in time.

Landing on a single foot, Link pivoted in place and brought the sword around a second time. This time he heard cloth tearing, a gasp of shock.

Link heard Rauru cry out in pain.

Ceasing his attack, Link looked down at the man and saw a long slanting cut running from his left shoulder all the way to the other side. However, the cut was thin and didn't seem to be a mortal wound.

Blood oozed from the cut, staining the orange robes and dripping to the ground.

Rauru coughed, then began to speak, his voice sounding old and tired. "Dammit boy, your obsession with this girl may prove fatal for us all."

Holding one hand tightly over the wound, trying to hold back the soft current of blood, Rauru paused momentarily before continuing. "Take your time, the rest of the world can wait."

He coughed dryly.

"I hope you see what you're doing before it's too late. Go to the girl. Risk it all just for yourself. Just, go."

Lifting one hand feebly, Rauru pointed at Link and the world began to change again.

Color rushed into the blank space and filled the endless void.

Link was standing in the room where he had fought the skeleton.

Walking over to the window, Link looked out toward the gate and saw something.

Far away, a crow was flying purposefully toward the town. Far below, Link assumed there was a skeleton somewhere.

Link waited, with the sword in his hand and hatred for the creature held tightly in his heart.

* * *

So I think the moral of Link's altercation with Rauru is that if you don't get your way, you should go try and chop up an old guy. Or maybe I'm taking the wrong thing away from this chapter.

Agree to disagree

Anyway, here's the chapter, and now it will be all the more stressful waiting for the next chapter.

WHAT? You're not freaking out and being childishly impatient? You fools! The next chapter include plot progression, talking trees, resolution, comedy, death, pleasure, revelation,a ghost, pain, horror, romance, dragons, wizards, the invention of the automobile, the first and second world wars, and the end of the world as we know it.

Well, some of those things will be in there. Maybe

I'm not sure why I'm in such a good mood right now, cuz that was a pretty heavy chapter. Maybe its the miracle cure that is Link trying to angrily chop up Rauru. Yeah that's probably it.

Anyway, I should be back with another chapter next week if I'm not struck by lightning.

We'll see...


	24. Reunion

Da-dada-da (or insert your own excited theme music)

It's here!

Now read.

* * *

Link waited in the room, waited for the skeleton and for Malon.

His sword was already bared in preparation for their appearance.

Sometimes his gaze drifted around the room, reexamining the pictures and things he had seen before. On seeing them a second time, Link realized that he recognized the mother and son in the pictures. He had seen them three times before.

Once after their fate had been fulfilled

Once watching it happen to him

And once he had been the young boy, experiencing the tragedy

But whoever they were, Link wasn't going to let the pictures draw his attention away from the task at hand. Wasn't going to let them distract him from saving Malon.

Turning his attention to the door, Link saw the skeleton standing there, Malon lying unconscious behind it.

Without waiting for words or any type of reaction from the skeleton, Link leapt toward it with his sword flying in a horizontal arc.

The skeleton seemed to effortlessly dodge the attack, but Link reacted quickly and redirected his attack. This time the skeleton was caught off guard and wasn't able to completely escape harm. One of the fingers of its left hand was severed and fell to the floor in a shattered mess.

The red eyes flared and the creature began a furious attack on Link.

Its razor sharp claws slid off of Link's sword as he desperately blocked the attacks. It drove him backward a couple of steps, but Link quickly regained the upper hand.

He jumped back, out of the creature's reach then lunged forward, jabbing his sword toward the empty skeletal chest.

It evaded his attack, but at the cost of its balance.

The skeleton fell back onto unsure footing and Link slashed his sword across its chest.

A raspy screech sounded and the skeleton fell flat onto its back.

Link raised his sword high over his head, ready to bring an end to it.

As he plunged his sword toward the aged skull, a flash of movement alerted Link to a new threat.

But it was too late

The crow dove toward Link's face and let loose a flurry of pecks and scratches.

* * *

Wafting up from far below, the stench of death drew the birds down toward the usually lively town.

* * *

Link tried to grab at the bird with his free hand but the swift animal easily evaded his panicked fingers. Link felt a few drops of blood begin to drip freely from his face and hands.

* * *

One in particular was drawn to the sense of pain, fear, grief, and hatred more than the simple prospect of a fresh meal.

* * *

Link dropped his sword and went after the bird with both hands. He regretted discarding his weapon, but if he didn't get it off of him quickly, this bird might be the end of him.

* * *

A boy trapped beneath a cart drew the strange bird, the scents of agony, terror, and sorrow were heavy on him.

* * *

Link wrapped one of his hands around the bird for a moment, but it squirmed out of his grip and resumed its onslaught. Holding one hand up to defend his eyes, Link waved his other harm blindly at the bird.

* * *

Approaching the boy, the strange bird revealed its gift of speech through a promise of revenge and violence.

* * *

Link struck out with his hand and felt it contact feathers and flesh. He opened his eyes for a moment and watched the bird fall to the floor.

After a moment of observation, Link decided that it wasn't the greatest threat anymore.

Link turned his gaze to where the skeleton had been before.

It wasn't anymore

Link felt panic course through him as he searched the room for the creature. But it was nowhere to be seen.

Suddenly noticing he was weaponless, Link realized that his sword was still where he had dropped it. Reaching for the weapon, Link felt something drop onto him and he realized the error he had made.

* * *

The bird came down from somewhere up above and descended toward me it landed just a few feet away from me and cautiously circled me for a few minutes before it stepped closer and began to speak at first I thought I was going crazy but the bird was really talking to me I didn't think animals could talk like people at least I'd never heard one talk before.

* * *

Link struggled desperately to reach around and grab the monster. It was grabbing his head and shoving its bony knees into his ribs.

Causing him all kinds of pain without actually making an effort toward killing him.

* * *

It started talking to me and it said that it could help me get revenge on the person that had done this to me and mommy it said that it hadn't been that man on the horse who had done this it said it had been a bad person who had let that man loose and was really behind it all and that if I did what the bird said then I would be able to avenge my mom and myself and all the other people who had been killed by this person in green.

* * *

Link slammed his back against the wall and heard one of the creature's ribs crack.

Bony fingers started to dig into Link's flesh, cutting his scalp and his neck.

Link tried to throw the skeleton off of him but it held on tightly.

* * *

I was so confused but I agreed and did what the bird told me to it said that the flesh was weak and that unless I shed my weakness I would never be able to avenge my mom it said that the quickest and easiest way to be released from the weakness of the flesh was to submit to the creatures who surrounded me to submit to the bird submit myself to the crows all around me who would eat me it said they were going to eat me going to eat me but if they didn't eat me I wouldn't be able to stop that one in green so I let them eat me and it hurt it hurt so much.

* * *

Link struggled against the creature but its weight threw him off balance. He felt his stomach lurch as he toppled over and fell to the ground. He was able to brace himself but the open wounds on his hands still hurt from the landing.

A raspy muttering voice was the only sound in the room other than Link's frantic breathing.

The voice grew to a hysterical rant and Link realized the creature was screaming at him.

"I, I let it, it ate me! They all did and I let them! I let them do it so I could find you! I've been looking, been waiting for so long! Seven years! Eight! Eighty? I don't know. It's been so long, so many days but you're here now! I found you now! I've got you and you're mine…"

The screams became a sort of strangled laughter.

Link felt the creature step off of him, leaving him behind.

Link tried to move but realized he was frozen somehow, stuck where he was.

But suddenly Link heard a voice echoing in his head, and a bony hand grasping his head.

"No, that's all wrong."

The bony hand was turning his head. Link could see Malon lying unconscious on the other side of the room.

"He can't see the show."

Link watched the skeletal creature begin to walk toward her helpless form.

"No…" Link muttered. This couldn't be real. He couldn't be helpless like this. He couldn't just watch this happen.

Link tried to move, desperately concentrating on just moving one finger, one foot.

Anything

Sweat dripped down his face, stinging the wounds. His breathing came faster and faster until Link felt his head burning.

And among that burning, he felt something else.

A small thing in the back of his mind, akin to what Rauru's presence had been.

And Link killed it. He crushed it and destroyed that thing in his mind that was holding him back. He smashed that little speck. He annihilated it because it was stopping him from helping Malon. It shattered and disappeared, becoming nothing.

Link tried to move again, tried to get up and go to Malon so that he could save her.

And this time he did.

Link leapt up from where he had been motionless and tackled the skeleton away from Malon. They tumbled across the ground and the creature came out on top.

It struck out with one of its claws but Link was able to catch it by the wrist.

"Damn you!" Link screamed, throwing a fist at the creature. He hit in the eye and the skull recoiled under the blow. The creature fell off of Link and he scrambled to attack the creature as it lay on its back.

As Link stood, two feet launched his chest and knocked him back down.

Within seconds the creature was on top of Link again and was holding up a wickedly sharp claw, about to deliver what would certainly be a deathblow.

Link tried to grab at the wrist but it was out of his reach. Holding the other hand in front of his face, he flinched at the sight of the deadly claw that was headed for him.

"Stop" a voice said calmly.

The creature atop Link froze. Its flaming eyes turned away from Link and its jaw dropped open.

The skeleton stood up and stepped away from Link, walking toward something that only it seemed to be able to see.

Taking his chance, Link backed away from the creature and grabbed his sword then scrambled toward Malon. Whatever happened, it was going to have to go through him before it got to her.

"It's, it's you" the creature said with a trembling voice. "Is it really you?"

"Yes, it's me. I've been watching you."

The skeleton leapt forward and seemed to grab onto something, almost as if in a hug.

"I haven't seen you for so long, not since…"

"Not since I died. I know."

"Then, why are you here now? Why did you hide from me before and just show up now."

"I haven't been hiding, I've been looking for you. But now I have a chance to talk to you. You have to stop this, this mindless violence and revenge. It's gone too far already and you've almost taken it to where I couldn't even help you."

"But, he's the reason that you-"

"No buts, the bird misled you. This man is here was trying to stop what happened that day. It's not his fault and all you've done is torment him."

The creature stared at the ground, seeming ashamed.

"But you haven't done anything irreparable, not yet at least. Just apologize and you can come with me."

The skeleton was silent for a moment before turning to Link and muttering something incoherent.

"Louder." The disembodied voice said, "Say it so he can hear you."

"I'm, I'm sorry for what I've done to you. She'll wake up soon."

Link just stared at the creature, uncomprehending of the situation.

"That's better, now let's go."

"I love you mom."

"I love you too."

Suddenly the creature's skeletal body fell apart into a shapeless mass of bones. Floating a few inches above the floor, Link saw the pale blue and transparent silhouette of the child from the pictures. Beside him was the mother, also pale blue and transparent. They were holding hands and the child was smiling at his mother.

"I'm sorry for what he's done to you." The mother said, "He was under the influence of a dark spirit. He's not a bad child."

Link didn't say anything, he wasn't sure what to say. He was still confused by the whole situation.

The mother smiled at him, then they both faded away.

Link didn't move for a few minutes after they were gone, feeling unsure and relieved that it was over.

And Malon was safe.

Link looked down at her. She was still unconscious. He pulled her closer to him, resting her head in his lap so that he could know immediately when she woke up. He didn't want her to wake up and be alone, even if it was for a second.

She was safe now, even if Link hadn't been the one to save her.

Link silently thanked the boy's ghostly mother, a feat he hadn't been able to accomplish before.

Then he apologized to the boy. Though he hadn't been behind the tragedy as they boy had thought, Link did have a part to play in that dark day. And he regretted it. But all Link could do was hope that his silent apology and his current efforts were enough.

Somehow, Link felt that they heard him, or maybe it was just his imagination.

Without any warning, Malon opened her eyes.

They shot around the room frantically for a moment before landing on Link. She calmed down and smiled.

Link smiled too

"I'm so glad you're alright." Link said.

"I was so scared, it was like a nightmare that wouldn't end."

"I'm sorry."

"I don't even think I was awake for most of it," Malon said, "But somehow I knew you'd come."

"I should've been here sooner, but you're okay. And that's all that matters."

Malon looked up at him and didn't say anything for a moment, just stared into his eyes.

Then suddenly she leaned forward and her lips were on his.

Link put an arm around her, and the whole world seemed to stop in that one moment.

Link had never done this before, not with anyone. But somehow, it felt perfect.

After what seemed like years, the moment ended. She pulled away from him and Link just looked at her with a slight smile on his lips.

A moment of comfortable silence passed before she said happily, "Come on, let's go home."

"Yeah," He said, "Let's go."

Link stood up, then helped Malon to her feet.

They left the room behind, and as they walked, Link took Malon's hand in his and they were both happy.

* * *

I really hope this was as good as you thought it was going to be.

Let me know if it was (or wasn't) reviews or messages.

Otherwise, I'll be back soon with the next chapter.


	25. A Dark Place

Link leapt across the chasm, barely catching onto the far side. His fingers nearly slipped off of the slick ledge, but after a moment of effort he was able to dig them into the soft mossy surface.

A burst of effort allowed him to pull his body up and over the edge, and within a few seconds Link had safely crossed the chasm.

But who knew what lay ahead?

Link heard his footsteps echo through the unimaginable depths of the Shadow Temple. He felt a cool breeze brush by him and his hair began to stand on end.

* * *

Link and Malon walked through the darkness. They hadn't encountered any monsters thus far and they might even be lucky enough to escape the troublesome experience entirely.

On the next hill of the rolling twilit plains, the ranch was visible. Its high wooden wall was visible by the moon's light. It served as a beacon and a goal for their journey.

Within minutes, Link guessed, they would be walking in through the front gate. After that he would finally be able to rest.

He had been awake for several days and was exhausted from the many trials he had faced.

Sleep would be good.

* * *

Link was in a room with no doors, only stone walls on all sides.

Each wall was laden with a deeply disturbing painting of some sort of gruesome activity.

Some merely had a pair of demonic eyes staring out from the canvas.

Link held his sword in one hand and the mysterious magnifying glass in the other. Whenever he looked through it, Link felt himself growing weaker slowly but steadily.

However, there was a benefit to the parasitic tool. It showed him the way through this seemingly inescapable maze.

With the magical object, Link had one less thing to worry about.

* * *

As the pair of them passed through the gates, Link noticed, with a sense of worry,

that the Talon had uncharacteristically left the gate wide open in the middle of the night.

He expressed his concern to Malon, but was only met with a blank stare of dread.

"L-Link, how long was I gone."

Link swallowed down the lump in his throat and answered her, "About a week. No more than eight days."

"Oh goddesses," Malon groaned, "My poor dad, he probably thinks I'm dead by now."

She picked up the pace and began to run toward the house.

Link noticed that despite the late hour, a light was still burning in the kitchen window.

* * *

Swinging his sword with more strength, Link was able to cut cleanly through the decaying tentacle like arm.

Its severed stump shook in pain for a moment before disappearing into the ground.

The stench of death was heavy in the air.

Link turned around and saw the creature that was supposed to have died. At least Link thought he had killed it, that day seven years ago, or yesterday. Either one.

Link waited for it to approach him before attacking.

The creature lowered its head in an attempt to deliver a vicious bite, but Link was able to evade is wickedly sharp teeth. He stepped around the flailing arms and brought his sword down on the horrible creature's horrible neck.

With a dull _thwump, _he decapitated the monster.

Its evil head, complete with hollow eyes and an oversized jaw, fell to the floor and rolled over once. Darkly colored blood oozed from the wound and onto the floor, soaking the dirt in even more blood.

Link stepped past the dead boy and head, reaching for the rustic chest that had appeared justmoments before.

Some type of treasure awaited him inside.

* * *

As soon as Malon stepped into the light of the flickering candle, Talon froze.

He just stared at her for a few moments before he could even react.

His reaction was so sudden and severe that Link barely escaped being bowled over in the crossfire.

Talon leapt up from his place at the table and enveloped Malon in a whopping bear hug.

"Oh you're okay!" Talon cried, "Oh my, Malon you're okay. I was so worried."

After nearly a minute of overwhelming hugs and muddled questions, Talon fell silent and finally gave Malon a chance to explain.

She reminded him about the skeleton that had appeared while Link brought him home. She then proceeded to tell him about how it kidnapped her and held her hostage in the ruins of Castle town.

Then she explained how Link saved her from the monster, how he followed them all the way there and fought the skeleton twice in order to save her.

Once she had finished, Talon seemed dumbstruck by the story. It took him a while to come up with something to say, but finally he asked, "This skeleton, how do you know that it won't come back, for you, again."

"It won't," Link said, "Its dead now and it could come back even if it wanted to."

Talon looked at him and said, "What if something else comes?"

"I won't let anything happen to Malon. I'm not going to let anything hurt her, never again."

Talon looked at Link, looked into his eyes.

"I'm sorry," Link said, "I'm sorry that I put her in danger. It was trying to get to me through her, but its over now and I won't let it happen again."

"Alright." Talon said, "And I can see you're tired, why don't you head upstairs and get some rest."

Link smiled, feeling weak from exhaustion, "Thanks Talon."

Link headed up the stairs and into the guest room.

He fell asleep almost before his head hit the pillow.

* * *

Link leapt from the ledge and into the open air. The gap stretched much longer than he could normally jump, and the fall was tremendous.

If he didn't reach the next platform he would fall to his death.

Just as he began to fall, the magic of the golden boots kicked in and Link began to run across the empty air. Instead of completing his jump, Link simply walked to the other end.

Hearing the scratchy unraveling of thread, Link dodged out of the way as a giant Skulltula dropped from the endless heights.

Ducking away from its spinning attack, Link landed a careful strike and the creature dropped dead.

Link left the decaying body where it was and continued on his way.

In the distance Link could hear the sound of blades clashing on stone.

And the growls of creature much more fearsome than a mere Skulltula

Link moved on, knowing that he had encountered less than half of what was in store for him.

* * *

Link fumbled around in the darkness for his boots. He remembered leaving them haphazardly next to the door, but he couldn't find them.

His eyesight was poor in the dark room, and everything appeared as plain shapes and colorless silhouettes.

Link's eyes focused on a pair of shapeless lumps on the floor. He sighed with relief when he realized that the lumps were in fact his missing boots.

Putting them on as quietly as he could, Link grabbed his backpack and equipment then started toward the door.

He moved slowly, cautiously. Hoping not to wake anyone in the house.

They had already suffered enough at his expense, the least he could do was to leave their sleep uninterrupted.

Slipping into the hallway, Link felt his way along the wall and found his way to the stairs.

The first step creaked beneath his weight, but it was the only one. Eventually he reached the bottom and headed outside.

The cool night air greeted him.

* * *

The world around him started to shake and sway.

And it began to move

The mysterious ship broke away from the dock and began to follow the river's course at an ever increasing speed.

Within moments the cavern was shooting by at tremendous speeds.

A heavy thud sounded behind Link and he turned to see two massive Stalfos soldiers, each armed with a wicked cutlass and a circular shield.

Link stepped toward them, drawing his own sword and shield.

Even as he moved, the two monsters stepped to either side of him and began to encircle Link.

Link lunged toward the closest one and let loose a flurry of attacks. Most of them were easily blocked but a few made it through. The Stalfos growled out an inhuman cry of pain and retreated a step away from him.

Spinning around, Link was able to block the second creature's cutlass just a moment before it made contact with his body.

Parrying the blow, Link jabbed his sword into the Stalfos's rib cavity. It's eyes flared brightly and it lashed out with its shield.

The shield crashed directly into Link's chest and sent him tumbling backwards across the deck of the ship.

Link struggled to regain his balance and managed to catch his footing just as the pair of monsters reached him. Link tried to shove his sword into the chest of the nearest Stalfos but succeeded only in mortally wounding its shield.

Link was surprised when he felt his sword get wrenched away from his grip.

It was lodged in the wooden shield.

Link jumped out of the way of the incoming cutlasses and drew his bow.

This was going to be a tough fight without the use of his sword.

But it was one he would have to win if he was going to keep his promise.

* * *

As Link left the house, the sun's first rays began to shine over the fence.

He started to walk away but stopped when he heard Malon's voice.

"Link?"

He turned around and saw her standing near the door of the stables.

"Where are you going so early? Don't you want to stay and have breakfast or something?" Malon asked.

"No," Link said," I've got to go. There's still more that I have to do before I'm done."

"Oh," She said, looking a little disappointed. "Well where are you going?"

"Kakariko," Link said.

"Oh that's not so far away," She said more cheerfully, "You'll be back soon right?"

"Yeah, as soon as I can. I'll try and be back tonight, but it might take more than one day."

She smiled, "Don't take too long, I'll be waiting for you."

"Don't worry," Link said with a small smile, "I can't wait to be back."

Malon was about to say something but a rooster crowed from somewhere on the ranch and cut her off.

"Well, I guess I should get going if I'm going to get back as soon as tonight." Link said reluctantly

"Yeah…"Malon muttered.

She didn't move for a few moments as he left, just watched him walk away from the ranch.

Then she told herself that he would be back soon, and went back into the barn.

* * *

Link dove aside and narrowly escaped the Stalfos's twisted blade. Behind him he heard the wood of the ship splinter under the weight of the strike.

His sword was lying unattended on the other side of the ship.

Link scrambled toward the weapon but fell off balance and rolled onto his back as the ship suddenly lurched to one side.

His stomach lurched along with it and Link realized the ship was sinking for some reason.

Moving desperately, Link jumped to his feet and ran drunkenly to the other side of the ship.

Just behind him he could hear the lumbering steps of the skeletal soldier.

Link scooped up his weapon and realized the Stalfos had him cornered. Looking back and forth frantically, Link realized there was only one way out.

He leapt from the side of the ship and began the twenty foot plummet to the ground below.

He screamed as he fell but fell silent with a breathy grunt as he struck the ground.

His lungs emptied and Link was left in a state of shock. He just sat there immobile and tried desperately to catch his breath.

Behind him, Link heard the ship fall completely under the surface.

After a few minutes Link was able to stand up carefully. He picked up his weapon and started to survey the room for a clue for which way to go.

A few bubbles floated up to the surface of the water and popped.

Link looked across the room and saw a pair of doors, he started to head for them.

The sound of splashing drew Link's attention and he turned to see the skeletal frame of a Stalfos soldier climbing out of the murky depths.

Apparently it wouldn't be finished so easily.

* * *

Link climbed past the last step of the stairs and saw the village laid out before him.

The many multitude of houses, the throng of people both residents and refugees, and the simple well that stood in the center of it all.

Link walked until he stood next to the well, hoping to catch a glimpse of the temple from that angle.

He saw nothing and felt confused. This was where he was supposed to be. Wasn't it?

His intuition had led him here just like the three previous temples and each time had been correct.

Then where was it?

Link heard a grinding noise come from the well and looked down at it perplexed.

It felt as if a great fist had sudden shot up from the well and knocked into him. Link flipped backward and came to a rest on the soft soil below.

Sluggishly rising from the ground, Link searched around for the source of the attack.

Nothing

Something slammed into him from the side and tossed him into the air.

Time seemed to slow as Link floated there.

Something in the back of his head told him that there was a malicious being somewhere nearby.

Link drew his sword and watched astonished as violet blood seemed to pour from the blade itself. A hollow shriek resonated in Link ears and he felt the force strike him again, sending him flying into the side of one of the buildings.

Link could move, he was so exhausted from the past few seconds. He just lay there on the ground and tried to catch his breath.

After some time his strength returned to him and he was able to stand.

It was then that a young woman came walking up to him with a worried expression on her face. "Oh, you're alright. We thought it'd killed you."

Link looked up at her and saw that she had red hair similar to Malon's, but she was taller and seemed less inclined toward ranch work than the easier jobs offered in the village.

"I'm sorry we didn't warn you before it was too late, but by the time we saw you, well you were already too close to the well. You see, there's a spirit that used to be imprisoned in the well, but it broke loose recently. It's been prone to randomly attacking anyone or anything that it can reach from the well. Impa went into the temple to try and stop it."

Link was still recovering and therefore didn't understand most of what she said, but he did pick out the word temple.

"The Temple? Do you know where it is? I've got to go there."

"Oh!" She said with a surprised look on her face, "Are you him? Impa said before she left that a young man would be coming here looking for the temple, and that we should help him."

Link coughed then filled his lungs and resumed breathing normally.

"Yeah, that's me. So could you show me where it is?"

"Yes of course," She said, "Follow me."

* * *

Link fell through the darkness, unable to see anything.

Unable to feel anything but uneasiness and discomfort.

Suddenly the ground below him had substance and Link impacted a flat elastic surface.

Reflexively Link loosened his knees and dropped to the floor without resistance.

Crawling to his knees, Link looked around and realized he was standing on a huge white circle made of some kind of stretchy substance.

Suddenly the surface shuddered and Link fell down again, knocked over by the shockwave.

Link hurriedly regained his footing and searched around the blank empty space for something, anything.

_It shows what is there, but seems not to be. It shows you the truth._

Link remembered those words but he didn't remember where from. Following the mysterious instruction, Link pulled out the lens of truth and looked through it, examining the darkness around him.

He froze when he found himself face to face with a grotesque beast.

A single bulbous eye, burning with hatred, glowing in the gloom.

Two monstrous hands with fingers at least as long as Link was tall.

And a razor sharp tooth filled grin that hung between the two.

"Hello…" It growled in a pleased tone, "I'm going to kill you now…"

Link reached for his sword and prepared to face the nightmare.

"I think I'll eat you when I'm done…" It murmured happily, "I think that will be nice, don't you think?"

Then one of the massive hands was flying through the air toward Link while the other beat the ground causing seismic ripples to flow through the rubbery surface.

Link took a step toward the nightmare, his sword raised high and prepared to do battle.

* * *

Link stumbled across the grassy plains and the rolling hills.

It was dark and monotone now. All he saw were faint curves on the horizon while the rest of the geography was nothing more than a featureless sea of ink, an empty canvas.

Each step grated his bruised and scathed body. He was covered in bruises and scrapes, but nothing too serious. The worst wound was no more than a long but thin gash on his arm. It would heal quickly and barely hampered his fighting abilities.

His progress was measured by the size of his goal. As he neared the ranch, it seemed to grow more prominent until it was a looming colossus that blocked out the rest of the world.

The gate was still open, and Link walked through, feeling his aching muscles complain with each step.

Sleep would be appreciated.

As Link neared the house, he noticed something strange. It was as if the events of last night were repeating themselves over again. Only this time it was just him, not both him and Malon.

Link noticed that despite the late hour, a light was still burning in the kitchen window.

Entering the house, Link put off his desperate need for sleep and investigated the kitchen.

There was a single candle on the table that was burning low, giving just enough light for Link to see Malon sitting in one of the chairs.

She was asleep, resting her head on the table with her eyes closed and her hands sprawled out across the wood.

She looked so peaceful, Link noticed, like an angel.

Link wasn't sure what to do, he didn't want to wake her up. Somehow it seemed that might break the spell she had cast over him. She seemed perfectly angelic as she was now, and Link didn't want it to end.

Feeling that his legs might not be able to support him much longer, Link sat down in a chair opposite her and placed his head in his hands, resting his eyes for just a moment.

Link might have drifted off to sleep and woken up at the table across from Malon the next morning if her sleep filled voice hadn't begun to murmur.

"No," she muttered, "Don't go away. Not again…"

Link felt transfixed on her, watching her lips move as they formed the dream words.

"You… saved me…"

With a sudden jolt of understanding, Link realized she was talking about him, unintentional as it might me.

"You're… coming back, huh? Right?"

Link felt frozen, watching her speak. Drawn into those few words she had spoken and what they might mean.

She was dreaming about him.

"No, don't…" She began to trail off, "I, lo…"

Her eyes scrunched tightly then opened slowly.

Moving sluggishly, she sat up and stretched her arms out at her sides, letting loose a tire yawn.

Letting her body relax, Malon rubbed one of her eyes and started to stand up, but then she realized Link was sitting at the table as well.

She nearly jumped out of her skin.

"Link!" She exclaimed, yawning again, "You're back."

"Yeah," Link said," I'm back."

Malon smiled sleepily, "I'm glad you're home Link."

"Yeah, me too," Link said, matching her smile.

She stood up from the table groggily, grabbed the candle and started to walk toward the stairs. Link followed her and matched her pace.

Within the confines of a minute they were both climbing the staircase side by side.

Suddenly Malon stumbled, whether it was the effect of her tripping over a step or a general lack of coordination due to fatigue.

Link darted forward despite his current state of exhaustion and caught her.

She smiled at him, "Thanks."

Instead of stepping away and resuming the trek to her room, Malon stopped and leaned closer to him.

At that point in time, Link seemed to be holding her up as much as he was leaning on her. As weak as he was, he still found the strength to keep her from falling.

"Link," She said softly, "Don't leave me again. It gets so lonely without you here."

"Sorry, I've got to."

"Can't you wait? Just for a little bit? Let a little time pass before you head out again."

Link shook his head sadly, "Don't worry, I won't be long. I'll come home as soon as I can."

"You promise?"

"Whatever happens I'll be back, I promise. I'm not going to leave you, not again."

She smile and looked up at him, "Thank you." She said happily.

She started to head toward her room again, but stopped once she reached the door.

"Oh and before you leave," She said, "Wake me up before you go."

"Don't worry, I'm not going to try and slip away again."

"Thanks, goodnight Link."

"Goodnight Malon."

Then she ducked into her room and shut the door behind her.

The light of the candle disappeared along with her and Link was left alone and in darkness.

He turned away and headed toward his own room.

* * *

And another week's chapter has come to an end.

25/30

Five more chapters until the finale

What will happen?


	26. Youth Part 3:The Cruel Fate

As the sun rose, so did Link.

He grabbed his equipment and was ready to head out after no more than a few minutes of preparation.

As he approached the staircase, however, Link remembered what he had promised Malon the night before.

Changing his direction, Link headed for her room.

He stood before the door for a few moments before turning the handle and going in.

Somehow the room was different than he had expected, even though he had held no expectations.

It was plain except for a few ornate adornments.

A short white table stood beside her bed. The white surface was interrupted only by a few delicately painted flowers and other small details.

A silver picture frame sat atop the table, but from this angle Link couldn't see what picture it held.

A window allowed a grand view of the ranch, showing a corner of the stables and the entirety of the field.

On the wall was a painting of a horse, all made of dull colors yet it somehow seemed to burn against the plain wooden wall.

Sitting in the corner of the room was Malon's bed, and in Malon's bed, was Malon.

Link approached the sleeping girl slowly and, taking a breath in preparation, shook her gently by the shoulder.

At first she barely responded, murmuring something unintelligible and shifting slightly.

Then her eyes cracked open and Link could see her blue eyes searching around lazily before settling on Link. They opened wide in confusion and shock for a moment, then slid back into a tired squint.

Malon smiled.

"Hi Link," she murmured happily.

"Good morning."

For a few seconds they didn't move, just looking into each other's eyes. Stuck in that one moment, mesmerized by each other.

But the itch of duty burned in the back of Link's mind and drove him to break the silence.

"I've got to go." Link said, a tinge of sadness hanging on the words.

Malon's smile started to fade, but Link quickly added, "I'll be back soon. As soon as I can."

She looked up at him, the words not fully fighting back her growing sense of dejection. "How many more? Is there ever going to be an end? You always have to go away. Won't there ever be a day you can just stay here with me?"

Fighting back the itch, Link said, "When I get back, I'll spend the whole day here. I won't go anywhere."

She smiled and closed her eyes, imagining it. "But what about after that? Will you keep going away?"

"Just once more. Then it will all be over. Finally over."

Link felt the realization wash over him as he said the words. Almost over. Soon it would be at an end.

Soon he would face Ganondorf for the fate of Hyrule, but that was something to think about later, once he was alone.

"Then you won't have to leave again?" She said softly.

Link shook his head, "But I have to go now." He couldn't fight back the itch of urgency any longer. "I'll be back soon."

As he stepped away from the bed, Malon's hand slid out from beneath the blanket and caught Link's.

"Don't go…" She whispered, barely audible. "Don't leave me again, you're always leaving. You never stay here."

Link stopped and turned back to her, feeling an ache to do just as she asked, to stay here with her, to never leave again.

But he couldn't, and with a slowly spreading pain in his heart, he told her so.

She was silent, looking away from his eyes, as if ashamed that she had even asked.

"I wish I could though…" Link murmured so softly that only he heard it.

"I know…" She said slowly, "But before you go, come here. Come closer."

Link leaned down so that his head was level with hers.

Malon's hand let go of his and arched around his neck, pulling him closer to her. Before Link knew it, Malon leaned forward and kissed him. Link kissed her back, but after a few seconds, he pulled away even though it only worsened the ache. He pulled away because he had to.

Link felt Malon's hand slide off of his neck, leaving behind a faint trace of its presence.

"I have to go." Link said softly, so quietly that had someone else been in the room, it would have been those two alone that heard it.

"I don't want to leave you, and I'll do everything I can to get back here. Get back to you."

Malon smiled, and their sheer closeness only served to multiply its effect on Link.

But still the itch burned, and Link forced himself to pull away before he succumbed to the ache.

He smiled then turned away from her, heading for the door.

"Bye Malon."

"Bye Link," She said, then softly, so softly that neither of them could hear it, "I love you…"

Then he was gone.

* * *

Link walked through the burning desert air, feeling the wind drive particles of sand deep into his scalp and the normally inaccessible recesses of his clothes.

He held a hand tightly over his eyes to shield them from the wind, the sun, and the sand.

It helped, but only barely.

But it didn't matter anyway, because he was lost.

In any direction he looked, there was nothing but endless sand dunes. Not a single landmark of any type.

Nothing

He couldn't stop to closely examine the horizon either, because the sand was constantly shifting beneath his feet. If he stopped for just a second, it would immediately drag him down to an unimaginable depth.

So Link kept his feet moving, constantly marching in an unknown direction.

He didn't even know where he was going, what he was looking for. Just a hunch, that was all it ever was.

Link felt his limbs growing tired. His legs began to burn as they fought to keep him moving, fought to keep him above the shifting golden surface. His arms were constantly being buffeted by the sand filled air and the skin was painfully raw.

Link was stumbling through the blinding storm, struggling to make any sense of it all.

His head hurt, partially from dehydration, partially from the blistering sun baking his eyes.

Partially from the deafening storm that swirled around him.

Or for any number of other reasons.

Link's mind felt tired. His vision was blurring and he could hardly think clearly.

Couldn't think clearly.

Link could feel a painful fog filling his head, preventing all but the most basic thought.

And there was only one thought left.

Get out!

Get out of the sandstorm. Get out of the deadly wind, the hungry floor. This dangerous place. Get out!

And by some miracle, he managed to.

Just as all his hope was fading away Link felt the surface beneath his feet change and he was no longer fighting to stay afloat on a golden ocean.

He took a few more steps and the solid floor began to curve downward.

Link pulled his hand away from his eyes and saw that he was standing in the mouth of a sandstone cave.

Trailing his fingers along on wall, Link continued downward until the narrow tunnel let out into a larger room. He was inclined to stop there, but the sand was still billowing from outside and it filled the air.

Link found another tunnel and followed it, feeling his true exhaustion take effect as he went.

Finally it let out into another open area.

Link collapsed against the far wall and sat there, feeling his sore body throb.

He closed his eyes, trying to soothe them.

His lungs burned as he tried to take deep breaths.

"It's you…"

Link opened his eyes, looking around wildly to find the source of the voice. It was hoarse and full of pain, but it sounded somehow familiar.

Then he saw it.

A shadowy specter was sitting against the wall just beside him. Its arms and legs were hanging loosely, blood oozed from the raw flesh of at least a dozen serious burns.

"It's, been forever." The specter groaned, "I can't believe it. There you are…"

Link looked at the specter, listening to the familiar voice, but unable to uncover its owner.

"It's coming, the end. It's closer than you think."

"What do you mean?" Link asked, feeling the painful rasp in his own voice. "The end of what?"

"Everything…" The specter coughed and a spasm of pain shook its body. "Don't let her go. It all happened so quick…"

Malon?

"What do you mean?" Link asked, suddenly alert, "Who are you talking about? What is this?"

The specter looked over at Link and he realized there was a shadowed tear falling from its eye.

"This is, the end. There's no time. You can't stop it. It's all over. Don't waste it…"

The specter's voice started to fade, the last syllable echoing around the cavern.

"The darkness is, "The specter said suddenly, "It's so hungry…"

Then the image faded away and was gone.

Link stared at where the specter had been, his hands shaking.

What did it mean? Who was this person, what was he trying to tell Link.

_Don't waste it…_

Link felt his exhaustion growing to an unbearable point.

His eyes slid closed.

The world faded away as Link drifted off into an exhaustion filled sleep.

* * *

The world was so far below.

Spread out below him, Link could see everything.

From the castle to the forest, the forest to the desert, the desert to the ranch.

It was all so big, gigantic beneath his tiny body.

It was all shrinking away from him, as Link's body fell into the clouds and disappeared.

"Trust me."

An old voice whispered in Link's ears, but no matter how much he craned his neck, he could see nobody.

Link felt himself being carried then, in the hands of something giant, larger and older than himself.

For some reason, the sensation was unsettling.

"I won't hurt you."

The voice spoke again.

It sounded tired.

Then suddenly the giant hands let go of him and Link felt himself falling.

The land of Hyrule in all its extent rose up to greet him, and as Link met the desert floor, it swallowed him in its unimaginable depths and Link felt himself being dwarfed by the limitless earth.

* * *

Link opened his eyes and found himself laying on a warm stone floor.

He picked himself up wearily and found himself standing in a grand room.

Ahead of him, there was a wide rust colored staircase. At the top of the stairs, there was a girl with dark skin and red hair.

Link started to walk toward her, but as he neared the stairs he realized how large they were compared to his body.

Looking down, Link realized that his was the body of a child.

* * *

26/30


	27. The Sandman

Link walked across the narrow wrist of the great stone hand.

Perched in the palm was an ornate chest.

After nearly falling too many times to count, Link reached the chest and opened it with a mighty heave.

Inside, he found a bundle wrapped in plain brown cloth. Removing it, he unwrapped the cloth and found a pair of silver gauntlets.

Unfortunately, they were much too large for the arms of a child.

Suddenly a scream distracted Link from cursing his childish body. Looking downward, Link saw the red haired girl, Nabooru, being circled by a pair of somethings.

From his high up place, Link couldn't see what they were, but one was red and the other blue.

They circled Nabooru quickly, then suddenly the sand jumped up from its passive mass and engulfed Nabooru.

She screeched and disappeared without a trace.

"No!" Link shouted, stretching out a hand as if to somehow help.

But how could he?

Then Link realized his mistake as he saw the red and blue somethings begin to head in his direction.

Hurriedly stuffing the gauntlets into his backpack, Link turned and ran haphazardly across the stone wrist and toward the door.

When he reached it, Link tried to open the door, but something on the other side of it clicked loudly and the doorknob became solidly immobile and uncooperative.

Behind Link, a nearly harmonious set of threatening cackles alerted Link to the danger.

He spun around and prepared to do whatever he could with his weak, miniscule body.

Then suddenly his vision turned black and he collapsed.

He was flying again, withdrawing from the world so that it seemed smaller and himself bigger by comparison.

The aged hands took hold of Link again.

* * *

Link opened his eyes and struggled to his feet.

Pulling one hand to his head in an effort to subdue his murderous headache, Link looked around and realized he was still standing on the wrist of the stone arm.

Reaching down he tried the doorknob and found it turned easily.

The door opened.

Link paused and looked at his hand, surprised by its sudden growth.

Looking at the rest of himself, Link realized he had become an adult again, just as inexplicably as he had become a child.

Stepping through the open door, Link headed back into the temple, continuing his exploration.

* * *

(If you want conclusion to this temple, take a second to go read my oneshot "Sandstorms and Spells". That pretty much sums it up. Not quite the same tone, but it's what happened. I don't want to write it twice. It doesn't need to be done.)

* * *

Link left the gigantic temple and stepped back out into the grinding sandstorm.

Taking a deep, readying breath, Link fixed his sight on the far off landmark of Death Mountain and ran off into the vicious cloud of dust and sand.

By directing all of his focus into a single objective, Link realized he was able to maintain eye contact with the mountain. The longer he ran, the closer the towering stone obelisk became.

Without the delirious wandering, the trip was much shorter.

But as he was running, Link saw something off in the distance, out of his way yet intriguing.

It was a shadowy figure that dominated the blank horizon.

Link watched it watching him.

It seemed to grow larger and larger, and this confused Link until he realized it was approaching him.

Chasing him

Link felt a chill run up his spine despite the scorching sun the relentlessly beat down on him.

He kept moving, to both stay afloat and maintain the distance between him and the shadowy figure.

But no matter how fast Link ran, the figure continued to grow larger and larger until it seemed to be at last twenty feet tall despite the great distance between the two.

And no matter how large it became, Link could see nothing distinct about it. The man-shaped thing was just a humanoid shadow. It had velvety black arms connected to a deep black chest. Burnt black legs carried it and a shadowy black head topped it off.

And even as Link observed it, the creature seemed to take a single step and it was much nearer to Link than it had been.

It almost seemed that it could reach out and touch Link.

Before it got the chance to try, Link diverted his interest away from it and began to run with more earnest. He pumped his arms and did whatever he could to outrun the shadowy thing.

He was running so fast that he almost didn't notice it when the sand beneath his feet became grass and the sand in the air was replaced with breathable oxygen.

Link slowed down and his exertion caught up to him all at once, causing the air in his lungs to become immediately inadequate.

He stood there hunched over, his hands resting on his knees, trying to catch his breath.

Looking behind him toward the desert, Link saw the dark creature standing at the edge of the sand.

It seemed to be watching him, waiting for him to return.

When Link could breathe again, he reluctantly turned his back on the blackened being and began to head toward the ranch.

It was hard to tear his mind away from the shadowy thing, but thoughts of Malon were eventually successful in doing just that.

Link started to run again, only this time he wasn't running away from something, but rather running toward Malon.

* * *

27/30


	28. To Take a Breath

Link felt the sun shining on his shoulders, warming them through the thick green tunic.

The great wooden walls of the ranch seemed to stretch infinitely toward the sky, leaving only a single chink in the impenetrable armor.

The sliding gate was open, allowing Link to see beyond the perimeter of the ranch and into the bright world within.

As he crossed the invisible boundary, Link felt an equally invisible weight lift off of his shoulders. Somehow his feet seemed less heavy, the air less thick and the sun itself was brighter.

Far away, but not so far away that she was indistinguishable, was Malon. She was leaning against the wooden fencing that surrounded the field.

Inside the grassy area, the horses ran and played, ate or just basked in the sun.

Malon was watching the horses, her eyes half shut and a small smile playing at the corners of her mouth.

In her hand she held a thin blade of grass that she absentmindedly twirled back and forth in a figure eight pattern.

As Link approached, a gust of wind stole the blade of grass from Malon's lazy grip and it floated away from her. She turned her head quickly and watched the wind carry the bit of greenery away until it disappeared.

Something else drew her attention, maybe it was the wind playing with the tip of Link's hat or the sound of his boots crunching down on the soft ground.

Her smile widened when she saw him and her interest in the horses disappeared for the moment.

"Hi Malon," Link said, his voice sounding dry but happy nonetheless.

Without the hesitation that she might have had under normal circumstances, Malon rushed forward and pulled him into a hug.

She felt his arms wrap around her Malon felt a warmth come back to her that she hadn't realized was missing.

"You're back…" She sighed softly, happily.

* * *

Despite the itchy hay and horse related smells, the barn brought a sense of peace over Link as he sat there.

Malon was close by, just beside him.

All the light that existed was filtering down through cracks in the ceiling, casting an air of detachment throughout the room. As if everything else, all that had ever existed, was far away in another world instead of merely hidden by planks of wood.

And in that air of detachment, any tension that had existed between them faded into a type of free trust that Link had never known with anyone. And in that free trust, Link let loose a realization that he hadn't shared with anyone, refusing even to acknowledge it himself.

"I know he's watching. He's been watching me this whole time. Everything I do. Everything I've done. I'm worried that, scared that, that when I walk into that castle, he'll know me better than I know myself. Anything I can think to do, it won't be enough. Because any tricks that I have, I had, they won't be good enough because he's seen them all before. I guess I'm scared I don't stand a chance."

"Of course you do," Malon said, her voice resolute, convinced. "How could you have come so far if you didn't even stand a chance? If there's anyone who can do this, it's you."

"Thanks, but he knows everything about me. I know that. And I know nothing about him. I've only even seen him once."

Malon leaned closer to Link until she was leaning on him, her head resting on his shoulder. She closed her eyes.

"Link, as hard as I try, I can't imagine you failing. I can't imagine anything being so hard that it's too much for you. Link, I believe in you. I know you can do it."

Link leaned into Malon and put an arm around her, closing his eyes as if to join her in that world where nothing was undoable.

He tried to push his doubt out of his mind, but before it went, the fear left one final message. A reply that sent a pessimistic chill up Link's spine before fading away.

_Well that makes one of us…_

* * *

The four of them each had place at the wooden table.

Link, Talon, Ingo, Malon, all sitting down for a midday meal. Nothing ceremonial or impressive.

Just lunch

They'd been eating for a few minutes, mostly in silence. Talon and Ingo had discussed some obscure repair job that would be necessary to get the Ranch back into perfect running order. But there was no conversation that meant anything to Link.

Until Talon looked up from his food in the silence and glanced over at Malon for a moment. In that moment, she met his gaze and nodded briefly.

Turning his gaze over to Link, Talon said, "So, Link, do you have any plans for when this, quest of yours is over? Malon told me that you're almost done so you'll be needing something else to do."

"Yeah, I guess so. I haven't really thought about what I'll do after it's over. "

"Well, in order to get the ranch back to perfect condition and especially to keep it there, we'll be needing to hire some extra help. Would, you be interested in a job here at the ranch?"

Link was surprised by the offer, and wasn't sure how to respond. But after a moment's hesitation, Link took the only option that he possibly could have.

"Sure, I'd love to work for you Talon."

Talon let out a hearty chuckle, then reached across the small table and shook Link's hand. "Good to have you aboard. I'd show you to your room, but it's the one you already use. But now it's official. Home sweet home."

Something fell over Link and he felt himself grinning.

Home, that was something he hadn't had for years, maybe not ever.

Not until now.

* * *

Lunch had been finished a few minutes ago.

The four of them were heading back outside to each go their separate ways, except for Link and Malon.

But as they stepped through the door, Talon's voice called back to Malon and said, "Remember what I said. After lunch…"

Malon nodded then sighed.

"What did he tell you?" Link asked curiously.

"I've got to get back to my work after lunch. So I guess you'll have to wait until I'm done with my work. Not too long, just a couple of hours."

"No way, "Link said, "How about I do them with you? They'll get done faster, plus it would be like training me for when I work here. A win-win." Link grinned, "Plus another win, getting to be with you."

Malon smiled, then blushed.

Trying but failing to hold back the crimson splotches in her cheeks, Malon agreed and they went off to fulfill an afternoon of labor.

Labor filled with each other's company.

* * *

Link watched as the horse shied away from him and was immediately catch in Malon's gentle grip. Not so gentle, though, that the horse's halfhearted struggle was enough to break free.

Malon laughed, "That works for now, but we've really got to get the horses to stop being afraid of you."

"Yeah," Link chuckled, "Maybe I just need to spend some more time with them."

But Malon was out of earshot already, leading the horse into the barn and then securing it in one of the stalls.

Link turned away from the barn in time to see the sun drop down from its invisible perch and touch the horizon and cast a burning curtain of light over the horizon.

As Link watched, he wiped the few droplets of sweat from his forehead using the corner of his sleeve. Though the horses were openly distrustful of him, he was able to help with other chores.

The work wasn't particularly difficult, not compared to fighting the shadow demon Bongo Bongo, or scaling the rocky sheathe of an actively erupting death mountain. It was something else, a different kind of work. Something that gave you as much as you put into it. If Link gave the effort get something done, he was given a finished job and the satisfaction that came with it.

That was something he hadn't known before, but it was something that he liked. Nothing he had done, none of the temples or anything related to them, had put out any kind of reward, consequence, or recognition. He cleared the temple so that he could clear the next.

But maybe it would be different when he defeated Ganondorf. Maybe anything that would have happened was waiting until the whole job was done.

But Link stood there in the field, the only evidence of his effort being a finished job and the few drops of sweat already soaked into the fabric near his wrist. And in a degree he had never known before, Link felt as if he had accomplished something.

That was something he hadn't known before, but it was something he liked.

The grass wasn't much of a bed, but Link was unable to notice any pebbles or twigs that might have marred the imperfect surface.

* * *

He was laying out in the field, his hands bent behind him to provide an impromptu pillow of flesh. Beside him Malon was doing the same.

The air around them hung silent, interrupted only by the occasional chirping of crickets.

Far above them, the stars burned like holes in the sky, shedding white light and filling up the night sky.

Something else interrupted the silence, Link could hear Malon breathing beside him. For some reason he tried his hardest to hold his breath or silence it so that he could hear her laying there beside him. For some reason, just the thought of her being so nearby filled Link with a sense of happiness.

A cool breeze lazily flowed past and rustled the grass, sending a shudder throughout the field. Then suddenly Link heard a separate shudder and he realized it was Malon. Shifting his head a miniscule degree to look over at her, Link realized she was shivering.

The chill in the air made itself apparent to Link, then. He hadn't noticed it before because he was used to spending the nights in cold damp dungeons.

Shifting his body slightly so that he was closer to her, Link slid his arm around her shoulder, trying to comfort her and share his warmth.

At first she jumped, startled by the sudden contact, then Malon leaned into Link's half embrace, resting her head on his shoulder.

She stopped shivering and Link was glad of that.

The silence continued, as if they were in awe of the expansive night sky. It dwarfed the, by comparison and made the two people lying in the field seem to be no more than two ants huddled close together.

And beneath that darkened sky, an air of detachment grew, separating them from any other world that might have existed. Link's whole world was they sky above and the girl beside him.

A smile settled on Link's face as he realized how happy he was to have Malon with him.

* * *

The world was just a tiny slit in his vision. The slit widened as Link opened his eyes.

He sat up slowly and stretched his cold limbs, feeling a pleasant pain arc up through his back and across his arms.

His fingers felt stiff has he pulled them into a fist, once, twice, a third time. The stiffness was gone, though they were still cold.

Link looked around and took in his surroundings for the first time.

A grin formed as he realized he had been lying in the middle of the field. His clothes were damp from that morning's dew.

Hearing a sleepy murmur, Link looked down and saw Malon asleep beside him.

They'd spent the night lying in the field.

With the amused grin still on his face, Link shook Malon gently by the shoulder. Her eyes opened slowly, a wordless whisper slipping from between her lips.

It took her a few moments to wake up, but soon she was sitting up beside him.

Looking around, a smile crossed Malon's face, "We slept in the field?" A tired chuckle escaped her lips.

Link's smile widened by a degree. "I guess we did."

Standing up, Link reached a hand down to help Malon to her feet. "Come on," He said, "Let's get you back to the house."  
Malon let him pull he up, and it was another second passed before the meaning behind his words dawned on her. She was the only one going back to the house, because he was going to be leaving.

Beside her, Link's smile sank, his own thoughts working the same lonely subject.

"I don't think this one will take so long," Link said, "And it will be the last one, forever I hope."

They had neared the farmhouse and were standing in front of the door.

Malon smiled at him, betraying a positivity that she really didn't feel at the thought of Link's departure. "You can do it," She said, "Just make sure you come home."

She leaned close and pulled him into a hug.

The moment seemed to last infinitely and for a fraction of a second, Malon thought that time had truly stopped and Link could be kept from leaving.

But then the moment ended and they were apart again. He was walking away and leaving the ranch.

It took every ounce of Malon's will to convince herself that he was coming back.

* * *

I've had a good feeling writing this chapter. Not sure if you'll agree but I think I finally gave their relationship the right combination of romance and innocence. I might have to go and rewrite the start of Youth Part 3 though, because that felt too heavy from my perspective. I was listening to the Cure while I wrote that and I think that was the wrong feeling for them, for this i had "I think we're going to be friends" by the white stripes on repeat. But maybe that was right for this chapter and the cure was right for the other.

I don't know.

28/30

I'll be back soon. Chapter thirty will be posted on christmas. :) That's just how much I love you guys


	29. The End of Bad Things

Link leapt across the stagnate river and felt the decrepit bridge groan beneath his weight. For a moment he thought it might give way beneath him, but it held firm. Nevertheless, he moved on, leaving the rotted wood for dead city ahead.

As he walked, Link took notice of the cobblestones below his feet. Most of them were chipped and cracked, many more were missing entirely.

A sickly stench permeated the air and drew Link's attention away from the floor. Ahead of him was a crowd of redeads, dead bodies that refused to die. Some milled about restlessly while others stood perfectly still, almost as if they were merely a group of demented statues left by some terrible artist.

A tinge of pain stabbed at Link as he realized that he was that artist. Long before, many years ago, he had allowed tragedy to fall upon the town. Link had played a part in the downfall of this once great place.

But no, it wasn't him. The guilt he bore wasn't his to bear and he had held onto it for far too long.

Glaring out above the grey rooftops of the broken city, Link shuddered at the sight of the mighty tower. It was a monument, a tribute to the twisted man within. The twisted man who had done the dark deed, leeched the life away from this once vibrant place.

He could remember how it had been. Children playing in the square, laughter ringing in the air.

Life, it had been everywhere. Now this was a dead place.

And somewhere in that tower was Ganondorf. The man, no, the monster that celebrated all this death and decay.

Link could feel his hands shaking at the thought of such a twisted man, who took joy out of misery, pleasure out of pain.

Link took hold of his sword and held it tightly in both hands. He didn't even bother trying to avoid the rotted creatures in the square. Link walked out among them, brandishing his sword.

Looking at their frail forms, his face was blank emotionless, both his pain at their fate and his hatred for their creator seethed within him.

A shriek filled his ears as they took notice of him. A needle of fear crept into his heart but Link shattered it.

He knew what he had to do, and he wasn't going to be stopped by these fickle demonic creatures.

Looking upon these damned creations, Link knew that nothing could stop him, neither pain nor fear.

Nothing would stop him from striking back at Ganondorf and making him pay.

* * *

His footsteps echoed off the stone steps.

The stairway wound in a tight spiral, heading endlessly upward.

Then suddenly it let out into a larger room. It was decorated ornately and a massive door was set in the far wall.

This was it, Link deep in his soul that Ganondorf waited behind this door.

Taking hold of the cold iron handle, Link put his weight against the door and wrenched it open. Link saw a massive man bent over a black piano. Heavy, melancholy notes poured from the instrument, filling the air with their sinister echoes.

As he stepped into the room, the door slammed shut behind him with a thud.

"So glad to have you joining us." A baritone voice growled over the piano.

"Us?" Link murmured.

The air in front of Link began to shimmer, and to his surprise a girl appeared and dropped to the ground.

She was unconscious, lying on the stone directly between Link and Ganondorf. Her blonde hair was splayed out on the floor around her head.

For a moment Link was puzzled, then he recognized her.

"Zelda!" Link exclaimed, astonished.

For a moment Link let his attention drift away from Ganondorf, but it returned immediately as the man began to speak.

"It's so nice to have all three of them together again," He said, a twisted smile spreading over his face. "It's almost like being whole again."

Before Link could start to wonder, a burning sensation shot from his hand and drew Link's attention. The skin on the back of his hand was squirming, then something began to materialize before his eyes.

A golden triangle.

One third of the triforce.

Before the pain had faded, something else covered Link's body. It was slick and icy, burrowing into him and trying to take control of his body.

Within moments Link was having difficulty breathing, struggling just to keep himself alive.

"And this is where it ends." Ganondorf said jovially, "All this time and you're just going to drop dead right there."

Link didn't want to believe him, but the burning in his lungs and the faintness in his head drove the idea home. He would die right here, no fight, no chance, just death.

His hands were shaking, everything was shaking. His body disappeared beneath him and Link fell to the floor, racked by convulsions.

His thoughts were fragmented, a single word, a feeling, a moment of memory.

Nothing more could pass through his mind, dying as it was.

The word was a name, a precious one: Malon.

The feeling had no name, only warmth.

He remembered the last time he'd been with her.

He remembered the promise.

He WOULD return to her.

Link took control of his body, forcing the icy death to retreat. The convulsions ceased and Link took a deep breath. His lungs burned from the suffocation, and the air soothed their hungry need.

Link coughed once then propped himself up on his hands and knees, then climbing shakily to his feet.

The whole time his eyes were locked on the beast of a man who stood before him, challenging his right to live, to return to Malon and be truly happy for the first time in years.

For the first time ever.

His eyes filled with anger and concrete hatred, Link snaked one arm over his shoulder and wrapped his fingers around the hilt he found there.

The sword slid from its resting place with a raspy hiss.

"So, you're too strong even for mental manipulation, I must have underestimated you." Ganondorf said, remaining unshaken despite having been overpowered. "I promise not to do it again."

The ground beneath Link's feet began to quiver, then a moment later it started to slip away like sand in an hourglass.

Link leapt away from the growing hole, but the new surface began to fall as he landed. It was too late jump again and Link found himself hanging onto the edge of a second pit.

With some effort he was able to pull himself up and away from the empty pit. Surprisingly, this new surface held his weight, if only for the moment.

Looking up at Ganondorf, Link saw a burning sphere of crackling energy hurdling toward him. Link was able to roll onto his stomach, and thus the missile impacted his shield.

Even so, Link found himself skidding across the ground until a painful collision with the wall stopped him.

Climbing to his feet, Link saw a second bolt flying toward him from the corner of his eye. Despite the protest from his aching body, Link whipped his sword up to meet the attack.

After a moment of sizzling impact and anxiety, the golden sphere reversed its trajectory and flew toward Ganondorf.

The red haired man gritted his teeth in frustration and prepared to catch the energy, absorb it, and attack the youth in some other fashion.

However, as the energy disappeared into his own body, Ganondorf saw a trio of arrows that had been following it. They were already too near to avoid and they buried themselves deep in his body.

He growled in pain and collapsed to one knee for a moment while he dealt with the pain. It was only a moment that he was weakened, but it was enough for Link.

In that time, Link had crossed the distance between them and replaced the fairy bow with a gleaming white sword.

Before Ganondorf was able to stand back up, Link brought the sword down and drove it through the center of his back.

Ganondorf collapsed to his hands and knees, his mouth emitting a wordless moan.

Wrenching the sword from the man's body, Link drove it in again. This time, Ganondorf fell all the way to the ground. Link watched him, waiting for the man to continue struggling, but he didn't.

Ganondorf was dead.

Link stepped back from the man's broken body and breathed heavily. It was over, done. The evil man was dead.

Suddenly the floor began to shake beneath him. Link jumped to another spot but found that the floor wasn't falling away. Dust began to fall around him, and a few small pieces of stone bounced off the floor.

The building was collapsing.

"Huh?" A voice murmured softly, "What's going on?"

He turned around to see a drowsy Zelda climbing slowly to her feet.

Link darted toward her and grabbed her wrist, pulling her toward a staircase he hadn't seen before.

"Link!" She exclaimed, "Where's Ganondorf?"

"He's dead," Link said, "Just run!"

* * *

Malon gazed out toward the ruinous town, toward the tower specifically.

Link was somewhere in there. Maybe he was dead, killed by that man Ganondorf or one of the other monsters of that place. Or maybe he was already heading home. Maybe he would walk over the crest of that hill any second now.

But Malon couldn't shake the feeling that something terrible had happened and she would never see Link again. She tried to ignore it, to focus on something else but no matter what she did, Malon's thoughts always turned back to that terrible idea.

If only Link would come back now, and all the tortuous waiting would be over.

Or maybe the waiting would go on forever, because he was dead.

No, she shouldn't think like that, he'd promised her that we would return.

But what did that mean? He wouldn't die on purpose.

He'd done so many dangerous things before, he would be fine now.

But what if Ganondorf was as strong as Link had thought, and he was overpowered. What if Link was killed and he never came back. What would she do if this morning was the last time she would ever see him.

* * *

They escaped the building, running out onto the burnt black surface of the floating island. Behind them there was the thunderous sound of falling stone smashing against the ground. The pair of them ran to the edge of the island, getting as far away from the destruction as they could. They held their hands tightly over their ears, trying to block out the cacophony.

Then suddenly everything became quiet.

Link looked up first, looked at the ruined skeleton of the tower. It was no more than piles of gravel and a few larger pieces. It was as if much of the structure's mass had simply disappeared.

Looking down at the boiling lava several hundred meters below, Link guessed at where it could have disappeared to.

Suddenly the air shook with a beastly growl and some of the rubble shifted slightly.

A feeling of unease took hold of Link's heart and he knew it wouldn't leave him until he investigated.

"Wait here." Link said, "I've got to check this out."

Zelda nodded, saying only, "Be careful."

Link pulled his sword out in readiness. He was advancing on the area, then just as suddenly as the roar, a monstrous creature erupted from the pile of rubble.

Link jumped back from the creature, trying to keep his distance.

From the corner of his eye, Link could see a wall of solid flame jump up from the floor. It surrounded the two of them, sealing them in.

In each of its beastly hands, the creature held an equally massive blade. The beast's yellow eyes were full of hatred.

What was this thing? Where had it come from? It obviously wasn't friendly, but Link knew nothing beyond that.

With no warning, one of the wicked knives shot toward Link's position. It was luck that he was able to escape death from the wicked blade. He jumped away from it, but wasn't able to completely escape harm. The blade dug into the flesh around his right side ribs.

Link stumbled as he landed and nearly fell to the ground.

Staring up at the creature, Link realized he had no idea of how to hurt it. The whole body was covered in armor of some sort, all except the head, but that was far out of his reach.

He had to find some way to get up there.

Taking a deep breath, Link darted forward, dodged the blades and rolled under the towering creature. His wound burned against the rough ground.

Wincing from the pain, Link found himself on the other side with no time to spare. He turned and leapt onto the beast's back, clinging to the blood red mane.

Link struggled to hold on as it flailed wildly, trying to get him loose. Each burst of movement racked Link's right side with pain, but he fought through it and held on tightly.

Pulling his sword arm back, Link swung it against the monster's skull.

However, instead of cutting straight through or at least damaging the brain, his sword just stuck in the outermost layer of its skull.

The monster roared in frenzied pain, reaching both arms around and trying to grab at Link.

Pushing his weight against the sword, Link managed to shove it a little bit deeper. Suddenly the frenzy stopped and the creature fell to the ground. Link was thrown off by the impact, and landed nearly ten feet away.

His breath was knocked out of his lungs and his wound throbbed painfully.

As Link pushed himself shakily to his feet, he saw the wall of flame dissipate quickly and fade away.

"Link!" Zelda screamed, "Hurry! Over here!"

Link looked back at his weapon, still lodged in the creature's skull, then he looked back at Zelda.

Gritting his teeth, Link abandoned his sword and ran over to Zelda.

"What?" He demanded, all too aware that the creature might wake up at any moment.

She shoved something into his hand.

Link looked down at what she had given him, "Arrows?" He muttered.

"Magical arrows." Zelda said quickly, "They'll weaken him, then you can kill him with the Master Sword."

"Him? Who is that? What is that?" Link asked.

"It's Ganondorf," She said, then quickly added when Link looked confused, "In another form. He's let the triforce consume him. He's given up what it means to be human in exchange for monstrous power."

Link nodded then turned away from her, returning to the dark thing that was Ganondorf. It had climbed to its feet, still carrying Link's sword embedded in its skull.

Ganondorf began to charge toward Link, holding its twin blades high.

Link raised his bow, fitted in an arrow, and loosed it.

The golden bolt buried itself in Ganondorf's chest, cutting through the plate armor.

Ganondorf stumbled for a moment, then roared furiously and headed toward Link again.

Link fired another arrow and it went straight through the monster's left hand. It howled in agony and dropped the weapon. It clattered loudly as it fell against the floor.

Now Ganondorf was moving more sluggishly, as if his limbs were too heavy to be moved effectively.

Link took aim and shot two arrows successively. True to their marks, the arrows embedded themselves in Ganondorf's knees.

With one last shriek of pain, the monster dropped to the ground. One hand was trying to lift him up while the other lay useless opposite it.

Link walked up to the beast that had once been a man, and, taking hold of his sword, wrenched it from the monstrous skull. Link raised the blade over his head, ignoring the protests from his wound, and drove it back into Ganondorf's skull.

This time, however, he didn't stop until his blade hit the hard stone below.

The creature stopped moving.

Ganondorf was dead.

Truly dead.

* * *

"I could send you back." She said, "To when you were young, innocent. Back to before this all happened."

"No."

"Why not? You could just be a kid again. Everything would be just as it was. You could go back to the forest and live like you used to. Isn't that what you've wanted since the start?"

"No, I, I've got something here, in this time. Something that's more important than a childhood."

"What's that?"

"A future. And now I've got to get back to it. I'm sure she's waiting for me. Goodbye Zelda."

"Goodbye Link."

He turned away from her, leaving the princess standing in the town square alone. He knew she wouldn't be alone for long, because sooner enough people would find out the dark king was dead and the good princess had returned. Then she would have a job to do, just as Link had had one. But now he had finished his, and just as he had told Zelda, he had to go back to Malon.

And this time, maybe, he wouldn't have to leave her again.

* * *

Next chapter is an epilogue, due on christmas. I'm so excited that I'm going to post it at 12:01. You can stay up with me and catch it as soon as its up, or you can get it when you wake up in the morning, or you can check it out later in the day, or you can blow me off and never read it.

Your Choice

FUN FACTS

This chapter marks the first time Zelda has had dialogue

Navi hasn't appeared in the story since chapter 15, poor fairy

Malon isn't a natural redhead(gasp) jk, that one was fake but I felt like I needed more than two

Anyway, see you on the 25th

29/30


	30. The Beginning of Good Things to Come

I believe this is generally referred to as christmas coming early. I just couldn't keep you guys waiting that long when I had the finished product sitting in my computer. Enjoy :)

* * *

Epilogue

The skies were dark as if covered with soot. Each breath rasped and his legs felt like iron weights. Each footfall echoed through the night. Maybe the next step would be his last. Maybe he would finally succumb to the wound. It had seemed like such a small injury before. Now there was blood dripping down both of his legs, leaving a small pool in every footprint he left.

If he fell now and died here in this field, who would remember him? Few would ever think of the fallen man, his bones left undisturbed in the middle of the field. Dust would gather on them before anyone decided to look for him. There was only one person who would even care that he was gone; she was the only reason he didn't lie down and wait for death.

Far away, she was probably thinking of him, waiting for him to return, tired from the events of the day, but still awake in the middle of the night. All because he had said he would be back. She was the only person who would care if he died alone tonight.

If it wasn't for the gaping hole in his chest, he would run to her. He would be running if he wasn't so unsure of his feet. Each step was like being stabbed all over again. But he pushed through the agony, just for her. Because he had promised her that he would be there tonight. He just had to put one foot in front of the other. Soon he would be with her.

The stars seemed especially bright tonight. Like tiny pinholes showing only bits of some other wonderful universe. They say the world burns especially bright for a dying man. But he wasn't dying, because he couldn't, because he wouldn't. Because far away, in that little house, she was waiting for him.

He knew what would happen if he didn't return. It occupied his thoughts. She would wait for him and when he didn't return, she would keep waiting. But he would never come back, because he couldn't. She wouldn't give up hope, though, because no matter how tortuous, hope lives on.

But he would never come back to her, because he was dead.

The first time the thought crossed his mind, he promised himself that he would return, no matter how painful and grim. That was why he was limping across the field. His equipment seemed heavier, weighing him down more than usual and making each step shorter and more difficult than the last.

As he stepped over a hill, he saw the ranch in the distance. There was one light still burning. Even when he saw the light, he still couldn't forget the pain he was feeling. Both burning and freezing, like his life was seeping out his body.

Drop by drop.

He took another step, and the ranch stepped away from him.

She was why he was trudging across the grass to the ranch. Because no matter how far away she was, she was his world. The thing that kept him going when he was near death. She was the reason he lived. The reason he woke up every morning. And whenever he shut his eyes to sleep, she was on the backs of his eyelids.

But now it was so close, he was stepping though the gates. Walking toward the house. But he felt light as a feather, like he was floating away from himself. He stumbled to where she was. He could see her through the window.

She was sitting in a chair, staring out into the darkness. And although she couldn't see him, he couldn't look away from her.

Just one step, then another, and he would be there. He saw recognition in her eyes and he smiled. She jumped up from the chair and ran out the door. The distance between them seemed like miles.

Then she was with him

And just like whenever she was with him, he knew he was going to be alright. He smiled some more and she smiled too. Then she saw his wound.

She looked worried

He grabbed her shoulder lightly, careful not to lean on her and betray his true weakness. He looked into her eyes, her big beautiful eyes and said, "I'm fine."

She wasn't convinced.

"But you're hurt. You're bleeding so much."

He smiled some more, trying so hard to convince her that he told the truth.

"I'm fine now that I'm here with you, Malon."

She looked away from the wound and smiled.

She wrapped her arms around him, not caring about how much blood got onto her dress.

Leaning in close to his ear, she said, "I missed you."

He returned the embrace and felt the warmth refill his body.

"I'm sorry, I'm just glad to be home."

Then quieter, so that only the two of them could have heard it:

"I love you Malon."

It took a moment for her ears to process the words; it was the longest moment of Link's life.

"I love you too."

And that was when Link knew he would be alright. Because after that moment, nothing could have torn them apart.

* * *

Awww, happy ending.

I have begun the sequal, Part two of the Memorial Trilogy, What I Forgot

Here is the link

s/8879077/1/What-I-Forgot

It isn't nearly so much MaLink, but it continues the story. It is about Link's revenge on Rauru. However, after some of the chapters from this story, that might be almost as good. Anyway, decision is yours, you can go read that, or you can ignore the link because you hate me.

:D jk

30/30


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